CABINET OFFICE

Regulation

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many instances of gold plating have been brought to the attention of the Cabinet Office Regulatory Impact Unit, with particular reference to the Cabinet Office Transposition Guide, 2003, page 17.

Douglas Alexander: The Government's policy is to transpose Directives so as to achieve the objects of the European measure, on time and in accordance with other UK policy goals, including minimising the burden on business. It is Government policy not to over-implement ("gold-plate") directives unless there are exceptional reasons for doing so.
	The Regulatory Impact Unit has regular discussions with departments concerning policy development, including, on occasion, possible over-implementation. Records of the number of times such discussions have taken place are not available. Since November 2001, Transposition Notes have normally accompanied all legislation laid before Parliament that transposes any European directive. These show how all the main elements of the directive have been or will be transposed into UK law.
	In accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines, Departments discuss with the Regulatory Impact Unit the range of options that might be included in regulatory impact assessments. These include options that could go beyond the minimum necessary to comply with a European directive, bearing in mind that, particularly where the original directive is unclear, it is not always straightforward to know in advance whether a proposed method of implementation might represent over-or under-implementation.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Consultants

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what sum has been expended on consultants by (a) the Department and (b) its predecessors since May 1997.

David Lammy: From April 1997 until March 2003, my Department's net expenditure with consultants was as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1997–98 0.7 
			 1998–99 1.2 
			 1999–2000 1.9 
			 2000–01 2.6 
			 2001–02 6.5 
			 2002–03 5.7 
		
	
	The recent increase reflects the wide-ranging and fast-paced programme to modernise the Department's work, to increase efficiency, and provide better customer service and value for money for the taxpayer.
	Delivering such a programme in the most effective and efficient way has necessitated the use of external expertise and skills to supplement the Department's own resources.
	Expenditure details for the financial year 2003–04 are not yet available.

Immigration

David Lidington: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether the Immigration Appeals Authority has received from the Home Office the papers relating to the case of Mr. S. M., husband of Mrs. S. K. of Aylesbury (GV100/86120; decision maker's reference: 643686; Gerrys/Fedex no: 90083389; appeal reference: 90063159); and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The Immigration Appellate Authority (IAA) took receipt of the appeal papers of Mr. S. M. on the 14 April 2004. The appeal has been listed by the IAA for a substantive hearing before an Immigration Adjudicator on 3 June 2004. Notice to this effect was promulgated to the relevant parties to the appeal on 19 April 2004.

Immigration

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will set a time limit on the maximum length of time between an appeal against the withdrawal of United Kingdom nationality being lodged with the Special Immigration Appeals Commission and the appeal being heard.

David Lammy: It is important that appeals before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) are dealt with quickly and efficiently and the Government are keeping the position under very close review. But there are risks to setting rigid time limits that stipulate appeals must be heard within a defined period. The complexities of a case, and the need to ensure that SIAC has the full facts at its disposal, mean there are always instances where it would not be possible. We are committed to decide each appeal on its individual merits and give that appeal the necessary time for a fair decision to be given.

Immigration

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what action he proposes to take to reduce delays in hearings before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission in cases of appeals against withdrawal of UK nationality; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The administrative processes for appeals against Deprivation of Citizenship proceedings are subject to on-going review to ensure compatibility with both the public interest and the independence of the judicial process.
	Interlocutory decisions in relation to individual proceedings are the preserve of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.

Parliamentary Questions

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will name all hon. Members who, since 1 August 2003, have been sent a standard departmental reply concerning the 1911 Census returns in which the Department has advised them that the period of closure in Great Britain is normally 100 years; and if he will list the decennial population Census for (a) England and Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) the whole of Ireland which have been released after less than 100 years of closure to public inspection.

David Lammy: Between 1 August 2003 and 31 March 2004 the following hon. Members have received letters explaining why the 1911 Census returns for England and Wales are subject to a closure period of 100 years:
	Andrew Smith, John Baron, Ann Winterton, Andrew MacKay, Judy Mallaber, Paul Burstow, Claire Ward, Nick Hawkins, Kevin Barron, Steven Webb, Andrew Tyrie, Sandra Gidley, Gerald Kaufman, Andrew Rosindell, Joe Benton, Nick Harvey, Mark Oaten, Helen Jackson, Robert Jackson, Andrew Murrison, John Grogan, David Borrow, David Taylor, Doug Naysmith, Roger Williams, Richard Ottaway, Alan Howarth, Philip Sawford, Vernon Coaker, Tim Yeo, Patricia Hewitt, Stephen Pound, Michael Mates, Michael Portillo, Jeff Ennis, Robert Key, Michael Wills, Siobhain McDonagh, Nick Gibb, Martin Caton, Ian Taylor, James Arbuthnot, Norman Lamb, Candy Atherton, Nicholas Winterton, John Hutton, Kenneth Clarke, Tim Loughton, Linda Gilroy, Hilary Benn, Michael Foster, David Drew, George Young, Paul Truswell, John Randall, Ian Stewart, Teddy Taylor, Wayne David, Ashok Kumar, Richard Burden, Andrew Turner, Mike O'Brien, Andrew Miller, Hazel Blears, John Horam, Edward Leigh, David Blunkett, Gwyneth Dunwoody, David Lidington, William Cash, Jim Cunningham, Robert Ainsworth, Shona McIsaac, John Taylor, David Winnick, Michael Wills, Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, Gregory Campbell, Martin Salter, Andrew Hunter, and Paul Clark.
	(a) The censuses for 1841 and 1851 in England and Wales, which contained less detailed information than 20th century censuses, were opened to public inspection in 1912. The 1861 to 1901 censuses were all released after 100 years.
	(b) The opening of census returns in Scotland is a matter for the General Register Office for Scotland, an associated Department of the Scottish Executive. However, I can refer the right hon. Member to the answer of 24 February 2004, Official Report, column 347W which my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Constitutional Affairs with responsibility for Scotland gave to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland on this subject.
	(c) The returns for the all-Ireland censuses conducted in 1901 and 1911 can be consulted at the National Archives in Dublin, in accordance with decisions taken by the Government of the Republic of Ireland.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

BBC (Commercial Advertising)

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to her answer of 31 March 2004, Official Report, column 1454W, on BBC (commercial advertising), how much the BBC spent in each of the last five years on (a) billboard advertising and (b) other commercial advertising.

Estelle Morris: holding answer 26 April 2004
	The cost of promoting BBC services is a matter for the BBC. However, the figures show the BBC's media spend over the last five years.
	The BBC's total bought media spend for the last five years has been as follows:
	
		
			  £ million Of which: billboard advertising 
		
		
			 2000 8.6 negligible 
			 2001 9.6 negligible 
			 2002 14.7 10.85 
			 2003 13.8 11.7 
			 2004 (1)12.0 (1)11.5 
		
	
	(1)   Estimate.
	I understand that the BBC made a significant change to its strategy in 2002 by developing a permanent holding of poster sites and switching much of its spending from other media, such as Press.
	The BBC's spend has also of course risen significantly since 2002 in order to support the launches of its new digital TV and radio services and to promote digital take up in accordance with its commitments to the Secretary of State.

Departmental Communications

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total expenditure on communications for her Department has been in 2003–04, broken down by expenditure on (a) Government Information and Communication Service staff and (b) other staff, broken down by (i) press officers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) others.

Richard Caborn: The total expenditure on communications in my Department in 2003–04 was £927,744. This figure includes staff costs for the Group Head, the Press Office, the Promotions and Publicity Unit and administrative support staff. A break down of this figure between competencies, or by membership of the Government Information and Communication Service could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The totals, do not include costs for special advisers, figures for which are given on an annual basis. Information for the year 2003–04 will be published in due course.

Departmental Communications

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff were employed in the Department to work in the communications field, and what the total expenditure on communications for the Department was, broken down by (a) Government Information and Communication Service staff and (b) other staff, broken down by (i) press officers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) others, in (A) 1994–95, (B) 1996–97, (C) 1997–98 and (D) 2001–02.

Richard Caborn: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Press Officers

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many press officers were employed in her Department in each year from 1990– 91 to 2003–04; what the total cost was in each year; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Numbers of press officers employed in each year from 1992–93 when the Department came into existence are as follows. Total cost for each year is available only for 2002–03 and 2003–04 as the information requested for earlier years could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Number Total cost (£) 
		
		
			 1992–93 7 — 
			 1993–94 7 — 
			 1994–95 7 — 
			 1995–96 7 — 
			 1996–97 7 — 
			 1997–98 7 — 
			 1998–99 9 — 
			 1999–2000 8 — 
			 2000–01 9 — 
			 2001–02 8 — 
			 2002–03 9 459,952 
			 2003–04 10 552,677

DEFENCE

Civil Servants

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list for each civil service grade within his (a) Department and (b) Department's executive agencies, the total number of staff employed, broken down by (i) gender, (ii) ethnic group and (iii) age group; and how many are registered disabled.

Ivor Caplin: Information on Ministry of Defence civilian staff is given in United Kingdom Defence Statistics 2003 a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library. Summary data for the civil service as a whole are published in the Civil Service Statistics 2002 publication. The 2003 edition will be published in summer 2004. The further information requested for the Ministry of Defence is given in the following tables: 
	
		Number of civilian staff in Ministry of Defence by gender, ethnic origin and disability (excludes trading funds and agencies
		
			 Ministry of Defence 
			 1 March 2004 Male Female Ethnic minorities(2) Disabled(3) 
		
		
			 SCS 200 20 — — 
			 Band B 1,160 250 30 30 
			 Band C 6,810 2,170 160 360 
			 Band D 4,450 3,020 190 300 
			 Band E 6,860 11,010 540 680 
			 Industrial(5) 6,910 2,220 120 460 
			 Other(6) 30 10 — 30 
			 Grand total 26,410 18,690 1,040 1,870 
		
	
	
		Number of civilian staff in Ministry of Defence agencies and trading funds by gender, ethnic origin and disability
		
			 Agencies and trading funds 
			 1 March 2004 Male Female Ethnic minorities(2) Disabled(3) 
		
		
			 SCS 70 10 — — 
			 Band B 970 160 20 20 
			 Band C 5,890 2,000 150 320 
			 Band D 4,610 2,260 140 300 
			 Band E 5,340 6,890 320 460 
			 Industrial(5) 4,120 870 80 340 
			 Other(6) — — — — 
			 Total 21,000 12,200 710 1,440 
			 Trading Funds3, 4 9,400 2,010 110 400 
			 Grand total 30,400 14,210 820 1,850 
		
	
	(2)   Figures for ethnic minorities represent those who have declared themselves to be a member of an ethnic minority group. A total of 14,340 staff in the agencies and trading funds, and 12,550 in the remainder of the Ministry of Defence had not declared their ethnicity.
	(3)   Figures for disabled staff represent those who have declared themselves to be disabled. A total of 14,830 civilian staff in the agencies and trading Hinds, and 16,320 in the remainder of the Ministry of Defence had not declared their disability status.
	(4)   A breakdown by Grade is not available for Trading Funds.
	(5)   Industrial and Trading Funds data are based on estimates from November 2003.
	(6)   Other grade includes industrials on temporary promotion, and unknowns.
	Notes:
	1.   Figures are headcount and have been rounded to the nearest 10 to preserve confidentiality.
	2.   Dashes represent numbers between 0 and 5.
	
		Number of civilian staff in Ministry of Defence by age and grade (excludes trading funds and agencies): As at 1March 2004
		
			 Grade 16–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 
		
		
			 SCS — — — 10 20 40 
			 Band B — 20 70 180 220 300 
			 Band C 60 360 730 1,220 1,490 1,450 
			 Band D 380 570 870 1,120 1,220 1,080 
			 Band E 1,540 1,220 1,950 2,520 2,560 2,260 
			 Industrial(10) 380 300 660 1,070 1,480 1,430 
			 Other(11) — — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Grade 50–54 55–59 60–64 65+ Unknown Grand total 
		
		
			 SCS 80 50 10 — — 220 
			 Band B 330 260 30 — — 1,420 
			 Band C 1,460 1750 330 20 — 8,980 
			 Band D 1,050 980 170 10 — 7,460 
			 Band E 2,240 2420 1100 30 10 17,870 
			 Industrial(10) 1,400 1410 970 20 — 9,120 
			 Other(11) — — — — 10 30 
			 Grand total 6,570 6,870 2,730 80 30 45,100 
		
	
	
		Number of civilian staff in Ministry of Defence agencies and trading funds age by grade: As at 1March 2004
		
			 Grade 16,24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 
		
		
			 SCS — — — — 10 20 
			 Band B — — 30 120 220 230 
			 Band C 40 320 690 1,080 1,360 1,390 
			 Band D 290 440 670 960 1,190 1,200 
			 Band E 1,310 870 1,160 1,810 1,840 1,610 
			 Industrial(10) 350 210 360 510 710 730 
			 Other(11) — — — — — — 
			 Total 1,990 1,840 2,910 4,470 5,320 5,180 
			 Trading funds3,4 980 1,100 1,390 1,600 1,720 1,550 
			 Grand total 2,970 2,940 4,300 6,070 7,040 6,730 
		
	
	
		
			 Grade 50–54 55–59 60–64 65+ Unknown Grand total 
		
		
			 SCS 20 20 — — — 80 
			 Band B 290 210 30 — — 1,130 
			 Band C 1,370 1,290 310 10 10 7,890 
			 Band D 990 900 230 — — 6,870 
			 Band E 1,490 1,530 600 10 10 12,230 
			 Industrial(10) 700 850 580 10 — 4,990 
			 Other(11) — — — — — 10 
			 Total 4,870 4,800 1,740 30 20 33,190 
			 Trading funds4,3 1,380 1,260 430 10 — 11,420 
			 Grand total 6,250 6,060 2,180 40 20 44,610 
		
	
	(7)   Figures for ethnic minorities represent those who have declared themselves to be a member of an ethnic minority group.
	A total of 14,340 staff in the agencies and trading funds, and 12,550 in the remainder of the Ministry of Defence had not declared their ethnicity.
	(8)   Figures for disabled staff represent those who have declared themselves to be disabled.
	A total of 14,830 civilian staff in the agencies and trading funds, and 16,320 in the remainder of the Ministry of Defence had not declared their disability status.
	(9)   A breakdown by Grade is not available for Trading Funds.
	(10)   Industrial and Trading Funds data are based on estimates from November 2003.
	(11)   Other grade includes industrials on temporary promotion, and unknowns.
	Notes:
	1.   Figures are headcount and have been rounded to the nearest 10 to preserve confidentiality.
	2. Dashes represent numbers between 0 and 5.

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent changes have been made regarding the use of free postage for military personnel serving in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to my Written Ministerial Statement of 27 February 2004, Official Report, column 70WS, and subsequent answers of 5 March 2004, Official Report, column 1155W, to the hon. Member for Portsmouth South (Mr. Hancock), and 1 April 2004, Official Report, column 1605W, to the hon. Member for Mid Norfolk (Mr. Simpson).

Manning Control

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers subject to manning control in the last 10 years are (a) still serving on an S-type contract and (b) have been discharged, and under what careers regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: holding answer 29 April 2004
	The number of soldiers discharged under Queen's Regulations 9.413 'Not required for a full Army career' following manning control review in the last 15 calendar years to 2002 was given in the answer on 27 November 2002, Official Report, columns 332–34W, as updated by the answers given on 16 September 2003, Official Report, columns 705–06W, and 13 March 2004, Official Report, column 386W.
	Of these, 319 soldiers are currently serving on an S-Type engagement.

Manning Control

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers who were subject to manning control and were discharged or signed on to S-type contracts and subsequently discharged since 1994 have been called up for service in UK operational deployment (a) in each of the last eight years and (b) on Operation Telic; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: holding answer 29 April 2004
	I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Defence Statistics

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the contribution his Department makes to the West Midlands economy.

Ivor Caplin: Publication of this information in the annual Defence Statistics report was suspended in 2002 because of concerns about its quality. Work is in place to improve the quality of these statistics with a view to their inclusion in the future.
	Defence makes an important contribution to the West Midlands economy through the presence of service and civilian personnel in their local communities, and through expenditure with companies based in the West Midlands and payments by the Department to local authorities. The Department's Defence Bills Agency database records that in 2002–03 the Ministry of Defence spent some £300 million of equipment and non-equipment expenditure to firms based in the West Midlands.
	The Department also conducts regional impact assessments to inform decisions affecting Defence estate and personnel.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Antisocial Behaviour

Sally Keeble: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many evictions by housing authorities for antisocial behaviour took place in (a) the last three months of 2003 and (b) the first three months of 2004.

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not request that local authorities supply information on the number of evictions they have carried out due to the antisocial behaviour of tenants.

Betting Shops

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance he gives to local authorities in consideration of an application for planning permission to open a betting shop from someone who has already successfully applied for a licence to run that business.

Keith Hill: There is no specific guidance on applying for planning permission for a betting shop, although we published "Planning Permission: A Guide for Business" in 1998 which informs applicants that betting offices are in the A2 (Financial and Professional Services) Use Class as set out in the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987. The Use Classes Order makes clear that planning permission is needed to change the use of premises to a betting office. The Order is currently being revised, but the announcement on 27 November 2003 on proposed changes does not include any proposal to change the position of betting offices.
	Even if an applicant has a bookmaker's permit to run a betting office in a particular location, he will still require permission to change the use of premises under the Town and Country Planning Act. We have no proposals to issue any guidance.

Planning (Flag Poles)

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what planning restrictions apply to (a) the erection of flag poles and (b) the flying of national flags; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will make it his policy to issue planning guidance to remove the need for planning permission for flag poles up to 18 feet in height in or on domestic properties.

Keith Hill: Under the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992 ("the regulations"), prior local planning authority consent is not required, in respect of a site where planning permission has been granted for residential development, so long as the flagstaff is vertical, does not exceed 4.6 metres in height, and is not within a conservation area, area of outstanding natural beauty, National Park, the Broads area or an area of special control under the regulations. The flag advertisement can only be displayed for the period of one year. Otherwise express consent from the local planning authority is required.
	National flags are exempt from control under the regulations provided each flag is flown from a single vertical flagstaff and it does not have anything else added to the design of the flag or any advertising material added to the flagstaff. We shall be amending the Regulations to exempt from control national flags however they are flown from a flagstaff.

Land Use Change

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much land changing to residential use was within 1997-designated Green Belt in each year since 1997, broken down by region.

Keith Hill: The available estimates are from Land Use Change Statistics for 1997, 1998 and 2000, are in the following table. Much of the development was on land that was already developed and the second part of the table shows the amounts of greenfield land used for residential development.
	
		Land changing to residential use within 1997 designated Green Belt
		
			 
			 Region 1997 1998 2000 
			   Hectares 
		
		
			 All on Greenbelt land
			 North East 5 10 0 
			 North West 75 90 65 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 60 50 30 
			 East Midlands 10 10 20 
			 West Midlands 45 35 55 
			 East of England 40 60 50 
			 London 10 20 25 
			 South East 135 85 145 
			 South West 25 30 40 
			 England 405 395 430 
			 
			 On greenfield (not previously developed) Land
			 North East 5 10 0 
			 North West 50 65 30 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 40 35 25 
			 East Midlands 5 5 5 
			 West Midlands 30 20 35 
			 East of England 15 20 25 
			 London 0 10 10 
			 South East 90 50 100 
			 South West 20 25 35 
			 England 255 230 265

Land Use Change

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many new dwellings were built within 1997-designated Green Belt in each year since 1997, broken down by region.

Keith Hill: The available estimates are from Land Use Change Statistics for 1997, 1998 and 2000, in the following table. Many of the dwellings were built on land that was already developed and the second part of the table shows the numbers just on greenfield land.
	
		New dwellings built within 1997 designated Green Belt
		
			   Dwellings 
			 Region 1997 1998 2000 
		
		
			 All on Green Belt land
			 North East 50 140 20 
			 North West 930 855 945 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 630 675 505 
			 East Midlands 225 145 270 
			 West Midlands 660 600 705 
			 East of England 470 845 625 
			 London 180 655 590 
			 South East 855 800 890 
			 South West 155 310 160 
			 England 4,155 5,015 4,710 
			 
			  
			 On greenfield (not previously developed)Land
			 North East 35 130 15 
			 NorthWest 495 410 330 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 335 360 370 
			 East Midlands 95 75 35 
			 West Midlands 335 220 335 
			 East of England 105 135 280 
			 London 5 240 205 
			 South East 300 300 220 
			 SouthWest 90 195 70 
			 England 1,790 1,985 1,895

Land Use Change

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much land within 1997-designated Green Belt changed to developed use each year since 1997, broken down by region.

Keith Hill: The available estimates are from Land Use Change Statistics for 1997, 1998 and 2000, tabled as follows:
	
		Land changing to developed use within 1997 designated Green Belt
		
			 hectares 
			 Region 1997 1998 2000 
		
		
			 On green field (not previously developed) land
			 North East 110 10 45 
			 North West 335 295 110 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 295 290 60 
			 East Midlands 60 75 70 
			 West Midlands 85 65 75 
			 East of England 155 85 50 
			 London 50 20 15 
			 South East 270 100 430 
			 South West 55 70 115 
			 England 1,410 1,005 965

Land Use Change

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the locations of each development on (a) Green Belt land and (b) non-Green Belt green field land for which he or his predecessors have given planning permission since 1 May 1997.

Keith Hill: My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister or his predecessors have granted planning permission on 162 sites on Green Belt land between 1 May 1997 and 31 March 2004. A table of the locations of these sites has been made available in the Libraries of the House.
	Information on non-Green Belt green field land is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Local Authority Housing

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on how the change in the level of council funding for housing has affected the residents of Preston since 1997.

Keith Hill: Since 1997 allocations of capital funding to local authorities for housing purposes have risen consistently by about 15 per cent. per annum on average. This includes the Major Repairs Allowance we introduced in 2001–02 specifically for the improvement of local authority stock alongside the Decent Homes standard which sets out minimum standards to be met by 2010. Preston's allocations in the period 1997 to 2003–04 have risen by over 35 per cent. In addition to this welcome increase there is support through the Community Housing Task Force and Government Office for the North West to help the local authority and its tenants to choose the best strategy for long-term improvement.

Local Authority Housing

Joe Benton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how the change in the level of council funding for housing has affected the residents of Bootle since 1997.

Keith Hill: Since 1997 allocations of capital funding to local authorities for housing purposes have risen consistently by about 15 per cent. per annum on average. This includes the Major Repairs Allowance we introduced in 2001–02 specifically for the improvement of local authority stock alongside the Decent Homes standard which sets out minimum standards to be met by 2010. Sefton's allocations in the period 1997 to 2003–04 have risen by over 200 per cent. and have been supplemented by the announcement of £86 million to be made available to the Merseyside Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder, NewHeartlands, between 2003–04 and 2005–06. In addition to this, there is support through the Community Housing Task Force and Government Office for the North West to help the local authority and its tenants to choose the best strategy for long-term improvement.

Parliamentary Questions

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will reply to the questions tabled by the hon. Member for Cotswold on 25 March, ref 163886, on Coverage Care (Gloucestershire) Ltd.

Yvette Cooper: I replied to the hon. Member on 29 April 2004.

Roadside Advertising

Ben Chapman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what advice his Department offers local authorities regarding planning for roadside and roundabout advertising.

Keith Hill: Advice to local planning authorities is contained in Circular 5/92: The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992. The Circular advises local planning authorities that particular consideration should be given to proposals to site advertisements at points where drivers need to take particular care, such as junctions, roundabouts or other places where local conditions present special traffic hazards. Local planning authorities are advised to consult the local highways authority (or the Highways Agency in the case of a motorway or trunk roads).

Site Development

Mark Hoban: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  when the sites owned by the Department of Health will be sold to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, in accordance with the announcement made by him and the Secretary of State for Health on 7 April;
	(2)  what local consultation there will be on the development of NHS sites to be sold to his Department;
	(3)  when he will announce the programme for the development of the sites to be sold to his Department by the Department of Health;
	(4)  what mechanism he will put in place to prevent a conflict of interest when the Department is seeking either directly or indirectly to develop sites it owns;
	(5)  whether the sites to be sold to the Department by the Department of Health will be sold on to developers to enable them to be developed;
	(6)  whether the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health will be (a) sold on a site by site basis to developers and (b) sub-divided and sold individually to developers;
	(7)  what the timetable is for the development of sites in Hampshire to be acquired by his Department from the Department of Health;
	(8)  when an assessment will be carried out of the infrastructure needed to develop the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health;
	(9)  what period the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health will be developed;
	(10)  what basis the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health have been valued for the purpose of this acquisition;
	(11)  if he will list the value of each of the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health;
	(12)  how many houses will be built on each of the sites it will acquire from the Department of Health; and what proportion of these will be (a) affordable and (b) available for rent through registered social landlords;
	(13)  whether the Department intends to secure outline planning permission on each site to be acquired from the Department of Health prior to the sale of these sites to developers;
	(14)  what planning procedure is followed when a Government Department seeks planning permission for residential housing development;
	(15)  what measures will be taken to ensure the Department's target for the number of affordable housing units will be met on the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health;
	(16)  who will own the sites to be acquired by the Department from the Department of Health;
	(17)  whether the number of houses to be built on the sites to be acquired from the Department of Health will (a) be counted towards regional house building targets and (b) be in addition to those targets;
	(18)  when the Department commenced discussion with the Department of Health on the acquisition of surplus NHS sites;
	(19)  what discussions he or his officials had with the Department of Health concerning the plans by HBOS/Miller to develop the surplus NHS sites; and when they commenced.

Yvette Cooper: My right hon. Friends the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Health announced on 7 April 2004 an agreement in principle to transfer over 100 surplus NHS sites to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The announcement follows an earlier decision by the Department of Health not to pursue a public/private partnership with Miller Homes/HBOS but instead to open discussions with to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister about the contribution the sites might make to delivering the action set out in the Sustainable Communities Plan (February 2003). Discussions commenced between ODPM and DoH officials after a decision by DoH to reconsider pursuing the proposed Miller/HBOS deal.
	Following the in-principle agreement to transfer the sites, there will now be an intensive process to establish the terms of the transfer and the implications for individual sites. It is not possible at this stage to say when individual sites, including sites in Hampshire, will be brought forward for development. Those sites which are currently vacant are likely to transfer from the Department of Health later this financial year. The terms of the transfer will be informed by the market value of the sites. An independent valuation is under way to determine an overall value for the portfolio.
	While many of the sites are already vacant, others remain occupied—if only in part. The timing of individual sites becoming available for development will vary from site to site. Each site will be considered separately in its local planning context before decisions are taken on future development options. The role that English Partnerships (EP), the national regeneration agency, will play in this process has still to be determined but we would expect it to be significant. There will also be a role for other public sector bodies such as the Regional Development Agencies.
	It is likely that EP will be asked to undertake a master-planning exercise of some of the key sites to maximise their potential to deliver high quality developments. These will be exemplar projects to demonstrate best practice in creating sustainable communities. We would expect EP to engage with the local authorities concerned at an early stage and to involve the wider community and other stakeholders in pre-application discussions. This will help to determine issues such as the number of houses to be developed on each site and the appropriate proportion that should be affordable, as well as the infrastructure required to ensure development is sustainable. Appropriate arrangements will be put in place to ensure that there is no conflict between the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's role in bringing these sites forward for development and its role in the planning process.
	The public sector will prepare sites for development and ensure their potential to contribute to the establishment of sustainable communities is realised. Development opportunities will then be marketed to the private sector. How individual sites are marketed will be determined through the master planning process and is likely to vary from site to site. The private sector will therefore have a major role in the development of these sites.

Rent Arrears

Sally Keeble: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many evictions there were from local authority housing stock for rent arrears during each of the last three years.

Keith Hill: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Rent Arrears

Sally Keeble: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the latest figures for rent arrears in council housing stock are, broken down by region; and what the figures were for (a) 2003 and (b) 2002.

Keith Hill: Estimates of total rent arrears due to local authorities as at 31 March for each of the years 2002–04, and aggregated to regional level, are tabled as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			 Region 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			 North East 32.8 34.1 32.5 
			 North West 77.5 64.3 65.2 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 58.8 61.1 53.0 
			 East Midlands 37.5 37.3 36.5 
			 West Midlands 47.8 44.7 40.7 
			 East 32.7 30.4 28.3 
			 London 215.6 185.4 181.7 
			 South East 33.5 32.9 31.5 
			 South West 20.5 21.7 23.3 
			 England 556.8 512.0 492.8 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   The above estimates are based on unaudited figures supplied by local authorities in response to a regular survey called "Entitlement to Housing Subsidies and Grants" and, in particular, the First/Second Advance Claim forms.
	2.   The total arrears reflect arrears due from both former tenants and current tenants.
	3.   The change in cumulative rent arrears from one year to the next can be affected both by the success of a local authority in chasing up rent arrears and by the fact that local authorities can simply write-off outstanding arrears at any time.

Wind Farms

Robert Walter: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the installed capacity and location of wind turbines granted planning permission was in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland in each year since 1990; how many wind farms were awaiting planning permission at 31 March; and what the generating capacity is in each case.

Keith Hill: Apart from Northern Ireland, where all applications are dealt with centrally, Government do not hold records of proposals for on-shore wind farms below 50 megawatts (MW) as these fall to be determined by the local planning authority under the normal planning regime. However, proposals to construct and operate generating stations with a capacity greater than 50 MW in England and Wales require my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry's consent under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989. This information is also collated by the devolved Administrations in Scotland. For all such applications, the information requested is in the tables.
	Section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989—applications approved
	There have been no applications approved in England.
	
		
			 Country Location Date received Generating capacity Date approved 
		
		
			 Wales Cefn Croes Ceredigion 24 July 2000 60 MW 23 May 2002 
			 Scotland Caim Uish, Moray 27 September 2001 56 MW 21 January 2003 
			  Pauls Hill, Moray 27 September 2001 56 MW 31 March 2003 
			  Hadyard Hill, South Ayrshire 31 July 2002 130MW 24 December 2003 
			  Black Law, North and South Lanarkshire 9 August 2001 142.6 MW 13 February 2004 
		
	
	English and Scottish S 36 Applications submitted 2001–02
	There are no outstanding applications in respect of Wales.
	
		
			 Date of application Project title/type Location, including grid ref (Easting and Northing) if available Maximum output 
		
		
			 14 December 2001 Windy Standard Windfarm Extension Dumfries and Galloway E 252 500/N 604 500 90 MW 
			 23 January 2002 Whitelee Windfarm South Lanarkshire, East Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire E 256 800/N 645 435 322 MW 
			 11 September 2002 (14 March 2002) Farr Windfarm Highland Council NH 731 292 112.5 MW 
			 31 October 2002 (5 April 2002) Braes of Doune Windfarm Stirling Council E 269500/N 705500 100 MW 
			 15 November 2002 Little Cheyne Court Walland Marsh Kent 75 MW 
		
	
	English and Scottish S 36 Applications submitted 2003
	
		
			 Date of application Project title/type Location, including grid ref (Easting and Northing) if available Maximum output 
		
		
			 21 January 2003 (N/A) Crystal Rig Windfarm Extension Scottish Borders Council E 372 847 N 660 603 62.5 MW 
			 9 May 2003 (N/A) Greenock Windfarm Inverclyde Council 59 MW 
			 14 May 2003 (N/A) Paul's Hill Extension Moray Council E 311 050 N 840 050 77 MW (additional 21 MW) 
			 18 June 2003 (12 July 2002) Gordonbush Windfarm Highland Council NC 2860 9150 100 MW 
			 4 July 2003 Scout Moor Lancashire Approximately 65 MW 
			 11 July 2003 (15 August 2002) Clashindarroch Windfarm Aberdeenshire Council E 348 500 N 831 500 129 MW 
			 29 September 2003 Whinash Tebay, Cumbria 67.5 MW 
			 24 October 2003 Keadby North Lincolnshire 78 MW 
			 27 October 2003 (15 August 2002) Aultmore Windfarm Moray Council E 345 000 N 860 000 62 MW 
			 5 December 2003 (N/A) Kilpatrick Hills Windfarm West Dunbartonshire 60 MW 
		
	
	English and Scottish S 36 Applications submitted 2004
	
		
			 Date of application Project title/type Location, including grid ref (Easting and Northing) if available Maximum output 
		
		
			 5 January 2004 Tween Bridge Thorne Approximately 84 MW 
			 9 January 2004 (6 August 2003) Abercairny Windfarm Perth and Kinross Council NN 890 270 66 MW 
			 16 February 2004 (7 August 2003) Calliacher Windfarm Perth and Kinross Council E 285 000 N 750 000 93 MW 
			 15 March 2004 Causeymire Wind Farm Highland Council 55.2 MW 
			 (7 March 2003) Harestanes Windfarm Dumfries and Galloway E 301 000 N 595 000 282 MW 
			 (24 April 2003) Lochelbank Windfarm Perth and Kinross Council E 311 440 N 713 477 51 MW 
			 (31 July 2003) Ewehill Windfarm Dumfries and Galloway E 265 500 N 600 500 80 MW 
		
	
	For Northern Ireland
	All applications approved
	
		
			 Location Generating capacity Approved 
		
		
			 Slieve Rushen 5MW 1992 
			 Corkey 5MW 1994 
			 Rigged Hill 5MW 1994 
			 Eliot's Hill 5MW 1994 
			 Bessy Bell 5MW 1994 
			 Owenreagh 5MW 1996 
			 Lendrum's Bridge, Fivemiletown 13.2 MW 2002 
			 Altahullion, Londonderry 26 MW 2002 
			 Lough Hill 12.25 MW 2003 
			 Tappaghan, Co. Fermanagh 19.5 MW 2004 
			 Callagheen 22.75 MW 2004 
		
	
	All applications submitted as at 31 March 2004
	
		
			 Location Generating capacity 
		
		
			 Dunloy 16 MW 
			 Beltany 11.7 MW 
			 Rosslea 17.5 MW 
			 Clogher 30 MW 
			 Binnawoods 9 MW

Wind Farms

Janet Anderson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance he issues on the minimum acceptable distance between sizes of proposed windfarms and the nearest dwelling.

Keith Hill: Paragraph 47 of the annex on Wind Energy in Policy Planning Guidance Note 22 (PPG22) contains guidelines about turbine separation distances from residential dwellings, specifically in relation to noise. This matter was also covered in paragraph 18 of our revision to PPG22, which was issued as a draft for consultation last November.

Wind Farms

Janet Anderson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to (a) amend and (b) relax the planning guidance in respect of planning permission for windfarms.

Keith Hill: The Government's proposals for amending the current planning policy guidance note 22: renewable energy (PPG22) were set out in draft Planning Policy Statement 22 (PPS22) published for public consultation on 5 November 2003. This document covered the handling of all types of renewable energy projects through the planning system. Copies have been made available in the Libraries of the House. The consultation period ended on 30 January. The final version of PPS22 will be published later this year following careful consideration of the consultation responses received.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Children (Residential Care)

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were placed in residential care by each local authority in the last year for which figures are available.

Margaret Hodge: The number of children in residential care in each local authority at 31 March 2003 is shown in the following table.
	
		Children looked after at 31March 2003 in residential care1, 2, 3
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 England 8,400 
			   
			 North East  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Durham 55 
			 Northumberland 50 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Darlington 20 
			 Hartlepool 10 
			 Middlesbrough 35 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 20 
			 Stockton on Tees 35 
			 Metropolitan Districts  
			 Gateshead 30 
			 Newcastle Upon Tyne 40 
			 North Tyneside 35 
			 South Tyneside 30 
			 Sunderland 70 
			   
			 North West  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Cheshire 50 
			 Cumbria 45 
			 Lancashire 220 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Blackburn and Darwen 30 
			 Blackpool 30 
			 Halton 20 
			 Warrington 15 
			 Metropolitan Districts  
			 Bolton 40 
			 Bury 20 
			 Knowsley 30 
			 Liverpool 175 
			 Manchester 185 
			 Oldham 45 
			 Rochdale 35 
			 Salford 105 
			 Sefton 100 
			 St. Helens 45 
			 Stockport 55 
			 Tameside 45 
			 Trafford 45 
			 Wigan 55 
			 Wirral 75 
			   
			 Yorkshire and The Humber  
			 Shire Counties  
			 North Yorkshire 45 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 East Riding Yorkshire 35 
			 Kingston Upon Hull 85 
			 North East Lincolnshire 30 
			 North Lincolnshire 35 
			 York 20 
			 Metropolitan Districts  
			 Barnsley 45 
			 Bradford 110 
			 Calderdale 30 
			 Doncaster 45 
			 Kirklees 55 
			 Leeds 165 
			 Rotherham 35 
			 Sheffield 100 
			 Wakefield 50 
			   
			 East Midlands  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Derbyshire 65 
			 Leicestershire 40 
			 Lincolnshire 50 
			 Northamptonshire 75 
			 Nottinghamshire 35 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Derby 50 
			 Leicester 40 
			 Nottingham 60 
			 Rutland — 
			 West Midlands  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Shropshire 30 
			 Staffordshire 90 
			 Warwickshire 35 
			 Worcestershire 50 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Herefordshire 15 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 65 
			 Telford and Wrekin 30 
			 Metropolitan Districts  
			 Birmingham 295 
			 Coventry 50 
			 Dudley 45 
			 Sandwell 50 
			 Solihull 30 
			 Walsall 60 
			 Wolverhampton 35 
			 East of England  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Bedfordshire 75 
			 Cambridgeshire 45 
			 Essex 185 
			 Hertfordshire 125 
			 Norfolk 135 
			 Suffolk 85 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Luton 35 
			 Peterborough 25 
			 Southend 30 
			 Thurrock 30 
			 London  
			 Inner London  
			 Camden 65 
			 City of London — 
			 Greenwich 80 
			 Hackney 60 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 60 
			 Islington 115 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 50 
			 Lambeth 140 
			 Lewisham 135 
			 Southwark 90 
			 Tower Hamlets 65 
			 Wandsworth 40 
			 Westminster 45 
			   
			 Outer London  
			 Barking and Dagenham 95 
			 Barnet 60 
			 Bexley 20 
			 Brent 70 
			 Bromley 70 
			 Croydon 90 
			 Ealing 80 
			 Enfield 60 
			 Haringey 120 
			 Harrow 30 
			 Havering 40 
			 Hillingdon 65 
			 Hounslow 45 
			 Kingston Upon Thames 20 
			 Merton 20 
			 Newham 80 
			 Redbridge 25 
			 Richmond Upon Thames 25 
			 Sutton 20 
			 Waltham Forest 95 
			   
			 South East  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Buckinghamshire 40 
			 East Sussex 45 
			 Hampshire 125 
			 Kent 120 
			 Oxfordshire 65 
			 Surrey 135 
			 West Sussex 85 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Bracknell Forest 15 
			 Brighton and Hove 35 
			 Isle of Wight 10 
			 Medway Towns 25 
			 Milton Keynes 35 
			 Portsmouth 35 
			 Reading 25 
			 Slough 20 
			 Southampton 25 
			 West Berkshire 20 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 15 
			 Wokingham 10 
			   
			 South West  
			 Shire Counties  
			 Cornwall 65 
			 Devon 75 
			 Dorset 40 
			 Gloucestershire 55 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 
			 Somerset 60 
			 Wiltshire 40 
			 Unitary Authorities  
			 Bath and North East Somerset 20 
			 Bournemouth 30 
			 Bristol 75 
			 North Somerset 10 
			 Plymouth 35 
			 Poole 15 
			 South Gloucestershire 20 
			 Swindon 20 
			 Torbay 25 
		
	
	(12)   Residential care includes secure units, homes and hostels, residential schools, and other residential settings.
	(13)   Figures in this table exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements.
	(14)   Figures over 1,000 are rounded to the nearest 100. Figures between 1 and 5 have been suppressed. All other figures are rounded to the nearest 5.
	Source:
	Children Looked After by Local Authorities, Year Ending 31 March 2003.

Pre-school Places

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) free nursery and (b) pre-school places were available for (i) three and (ii) four-year-olds in Burnley in each of the last seven years.

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) free nursery and (b) pre-school places were available for (i) three and (ii) four-year-olds in Preston in each of the last seven years.

Margaret Hodge: The information is not available in the form requested.
	Figures on the number of free nursery education places taken up by three and four year olds in Lancashire local education authority area are shown in the table.
	The latest figures on provision for three and four-year-olds in England were published in a Statistical Bulletin "Provision for children under five years of age in England—January 2003" which is available on the Department's website www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/.
	Since the beginning of April 2004, six months ahead of our original target, all three-year-olds in England whose parents want one, are eligible for a free, part-time early education place.
	
		Number of free nursery education places1,2 taken up by three and four-year-old children in maintained nursery and primary schools and private, voluntary and independent providers—Lancashire local education authority area—1997 to 2003
		
			 Position in January each year 
			  Three-year-olds Four-year-olds 
		
		
			 1997 4,400 12,400 
			 1998 4,400 13,500 
			 1999 4,400 16,000 
			 2000 4,300 15,900 
			 2001 9,400 15,700 
			 2002 9,400 13,000 
			 2003 10,100 12,600 
		
	
	(15)   Part-time equivalent number of free nursery education places taken up by three and four-year-old children.
	(16)   A free nursery education place comprises five two and a half hour sessions of early years education per week, for 33 weeks of the year, usually three terms of 11 weeks.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Illegal Meat Imports

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what estimate she has made of the amount of meat illegally imported into the UK in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  what estimates she has made of the quantity of meat illegally imported into the UK in the last 12 months.

Ben Bradshaw: Estimates of the amount of illegal meat imports may be made on the basis of the amount of such meat detected. However prior to 2001 information on seizures of illegal meat imports by enforcement authorities was not collected centrally. In August 2001, Defra set up the first national database to capture data on seizures of illegally imported products of animal origin (POAO).
	The Veterinary Laboratories Agency's 'Risk Assessment for the Import of Meat and Meat Products Contaminated with Foot and Mouth Disease Virus into Great Britain and the Subsequent Exposure of GB Livestock', published in-March 2003, used the seizure database to estimate that the total amount of illegal meat entering GB each year is 7,431 tonnes on average, with 90 per cent. certainty that this is between 2,771 and 14,484 tonnes per year.
	Information on seizures of illegal imports continues to be collected centrally and will be published in Defra's annual review of controls on imports of animal products.

Abattoirs

Edward O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to her answer of 16 March 2004, Official Report, column 156W, on abattoirs, how many individual case files there are in which are recorded the details of charges which are brought against abattoirs that were withdrawn before they come to court; and where they are kept.

Ben Bradshaw: Details of all charges laid against abattoirs for meat hygiene and animal welfare offences are recorded on individual case files. There are 49 case files relating to prosecutions brought against abattoirs in 2002 and 2003. Details of any charges withdrawn before cases came to court are recorded on the individual files, which are either retained by the Food Standards Agency at their headquarters in London or held in storage in Derbyshire.

Abattoirs

Edward O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average cost was to the Department in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04 of a charge successfully brought against an abattoir for breach of meat hygiene and animal welfare regulations.

Ben Bradshaw: The average legal cost incurred by this Department and the Food Standards Agency in pursuit of a charge successfully brought against an abattoir for a breach of meat hygiene or animal welfare regulations was:
	
		
			  Per charge (£) 
		
		
			 2002–03 1,190.04 
			 2003–04 975.79

Abattoirs

Edward O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average cost was to the Department in financial years (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04 of a charge brought against an abattoir for breach of the meat hygiene and animal welfare regulations but which it dropped before it came to court.

Ben Bradshaw: The average legal cost incurred by both this Department and the Food Standards Agency in pursuit of charges brought against abattoirs for a breach of the meat hygiene or animal welfare regulations, which were dropped before coming to court was:
	
		
			  Per charge (£) 
		
		
			 2002–03 1,426.54 
			 2003–04 390.26

Animal Welfare Bill

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to introduce an Animal Welfare Bill.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department is proposing to introduce an Animal Welfare Bill that will update and consolidate legislation relating to the welfare of captive and domestic animals. The earliest the Bill could be introduced into Parliament is the session beginning November 2004.

Sea Bass

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make it her Department's policy to source sea bass used in catering outlets for which her Department is responsible from hand-line fishermen rather than pair trawlers.

Ben Bradshaw: Defra supports the sourcing of sea bass from sustainable fisheries and handlining, as a relatively low impact method of fishing, can play a part in ensuring fisheries remain sustainable. However, the last report in 2003 by the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas on sea bass advised that the level of exploitation of the stock at that time was sustainable and did not recommend closure of the offshore pair trawl fishery. There are currently no restrictions at a UK or Community level on the method of fishing that can be used to target bass. In addition, to address the dolphin bycatch problem associated with the pair trawl fishery, Defra-funded trials of a separate grid device to reduce dolphin bycatch are currently taking place, with the co-operation of the fishing industry.
	In these circumstances, I do not believe that recommending a specific source of supply for bass could be justified at this stage.

Blue Tongue Virus

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the risks of a blue tongue virus outbreak in the United Kingdom.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 27 April 2004
	Defra have prepared a technical review which describes the virus, its hosts and vectors, and a control strategy for the various scenarios whereby the bluetongue virus could be introduced to the United Kingdom. These documents can be found online at the Defra website at the following locations:
	Technical Review
	http://defraweb/animalh/diseases/notifiable/disease/bluetongue   technical.PDF
	Control Strategy
	http://defraweb/animalh/diseases/notifiable/disease/bluetongue   control   strategy.pdf
	Whenever there is a serious disease outbreak in another country that could affect the UK via trade in animals and animal products, we prepare a risk assessment and post it on the Defra website The most recent one in respect of blue tongue was prepared in October last year following an outbreak of the disease in the Balearics.

Bovine TB

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what lessons can be learned in respect of UK TB control measures from the New Zealand experiences of possum clearance.

Ben Bradshaw: There are two main lessons to be learned from the New Zealand experience of possum clearance. Firstly, in a situation where a wild mammal acts as a maintenance host of TB, a successful eradication scheme must include a strategy to limit the infective contacts between the wildlife reservoir and cattle. This must be in addition to a programme of frequent tuberculin testing of cattle herds, removal of reactors, slaughterhouse surveillance and controls of cattle movements from infected herds. The second lesson is that this multi-pronged approach is an effort that must be maintained over time.

Cotswold Conservation Board

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will set out the (a) proposed role and (b) level of funding planned for the Cotswold Conservation Board; whether it will be liable for VAT; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is as follows:
	(a) The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 states that the two purposes of a Conservation Board are:
	(i) conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the area of outstanding natural beauty, and
	(ii) increasing the understanding and enjoyment by the public of the special qualities of the area of outstanding natural beauty.
	Additionally, a Conservation Board, while having regard to these purposes, should seek to foster the economic and social well-being of local communities within the area, but without incurring significant expenditure.
	(b) If created, the Cotswolds AONB Conservation Board would receive Countryside Agency funding to meet 80 per cent. of its core costs. This compares to a 75 per cent. contribution in AONBs managed by local authorities, which can reclaim their VAT payments. The increased contribution is to offset the Boards not being able to reclaim their VAT payments.

EU Rural Development Regulation

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the new requirements which will be imposed by the 2007 EU Rural Development Regulation.

Alun Michael: The European Commission is expected to publish legislative proposals on EU rural development spending later this year. The United Kingdom's position on the draft regulation will be developed in discussion with the devolved Administrations in Scotland and Wales, and with the Northern Ireland Administration, and following consultation with stakeholders. We hope to see a significant simplification in comparison with the current rural development regulation and a greater focus on rural development in general.

Fisheries

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the lease of sea bed for fish farming.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government's policy on marine fish farming is to encourage the development of viable, competitive and sustainable fish farming enterprises providing this can be done within a framework which protects the health and welfare of farmed and wild stocks. Central to that policy is the sustainable use of the marine environment and the prosperity of the economies and communities in associated areas.
	Policy responsibility on the lease of sea bed for fish farming is a matter for the Crown Estate.

Fisheries

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will request that the European Commission conduct as a matter of urgency a study to establish for each EU member state, under the provisions of the new Regulation concerning incidental catches of cetaceans in fisheries; and on the basis of current fishing data, the number of vessels that will be (a) required to use pingers and (b) required to carry observers; and what proportion of national fishing effort in relevant fleets will be exempt from each of the above requirements as a result of the exclusions of vessels (i) smaller than 12 metres, (ii) smaller than 15 metres and (iii) using pingers.

Ben Bradshaw: The UK has been seeking Community action for some time to address the accidental deaths of dolphins and porpoises from fishing activity. I am pleased therefore that agreement was reached on a new Council Regulation to address this problem at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council of Ministers Meeting on 22 and 23 March. The UK would have preferred the Regulation to have been stricter in certain areas but the agreed Regulation represented a package that was acceptable to the majority of member states, in the light of available scientific data. The review clause in the Regulation provides the opportunity to press for further action to refine and target measures at other sectors of the fleet if justified. In these circumstances, I do not believe a request at this stage to the Commission to conduct a further study in relation to cetacean bycatch would be justified or successful.

Fisheries

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what proportion of UK fishing effort in fisheries under the provisions of the new Regulation agreed at the Fisheries Council on 22 and 23 March will be exempt from the observer requirement on the basis of the exclusion of (a) vessels smaller than 15 metres and (b) vessels that are using pingers;
	(2)  how many UK fishing vessels will be required to use pingers in gillnet fisheries in areas IV and VII under the provisions of the new regulation agreed at the Fisheries Council on 22 and 23 March, on the basis of current fishing effort.

Ben Bradshaw: The Council Regulation laying down measures concerning the incidental catches of cetaceans in fisheries will require member states to design and implement monitoring schemes to observe bycatch on vessels of 15 metres or over. Such schemes need to provide representative data for bycatch in a range of fisheries. For vessels under 15 metres, members states need ot take steps to collect data on incidental catches by means of appropriate scientific studies or pilot projects. The Regulation is not expected to enter into force until 1 July 2004 and the start date for the monitoring requirements will be 1 January 2005. The UK monitoring scheme will be designed in the coming months and I am therefore not in a position at present to provide detailed data on the coverage or otherwise of the scheme.

Fisheries

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Government will (a) publish and (b) implement their Cetacean Bycatch Response Strategy.

Ben Bradshaw: I shall be assessing the best way in which to take forward the UK Small Cetacean Bycatch Response Strategy in light of the agreement reached at the March meeting of the EC Agriculture and Fisheries Council to proposals for a new EC Regulation on bycatch.

Fisheries

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many UK vessels were fishing in the pelagic trawl fishery in area VII for bass during (a) March and (b) April on the latest date for which figures are available; how many of these vessels are being monitored for cetacean bycatch by onboard observers; how many are engaged in trialling bycatch mitigation measures; and if she will introduce emergency restrictions on this fishery unless and until effective measures to prevent cetacean bycatch can be put in place.

Ben Bradshaw: A maximum of seven pairs of UK vessels were in the pelagic trawl fishery in area VII fishing for bass in March and early April. This has since dropped to one pair of vessels. Defra-funded observers have been onboard two pairs of vessels to monitor bycatch and one pair of vessels has been engaged in trialling mitigation measures since December 2003 as part of Defra-funded research.
	I do not rule out action to restrict this fishery but, given the involvement of other member states, Community action would be most effective means of addressing bycatch in this fishery. Consideration of emergency restrictions would be premature before this season's trials of mitigation measures have been completed and the results considered.

Growth Promoters (Animal Feeds)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the EU ban on the use of antimicrobial growth promoters in animal feeds; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The EU-wide ban on the use of antimicrobial growth promoters comes into effect on 1 January 2006. The VMD collects and publishes annual figures of sales of all veterinary therapeutic and growth promoting antimicrobials to monitor changes in sales of these products. The latest figures available show that sales of antimicrobial growth promoters had reduced to 27 tonnes of active ingredients in 2002.
	Officials from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) have held a number of discussions with colleagues from Denmark and other countries that have already voluntarily banned the use of antimicrobial growth promoters. They have considered their experiences and the success of the measures put into place to minimise any adverse effects from the loss of these products. In the period following the ban an increase in animal illness had been noticed that lead to an increase in use of therapeutic antimicrobials.
	This information is being shared with industry through VMD's regular meetings with the Responsible Use of Medicines In Agriculture (RUMA) alliance. A representative from RUMA also recently attended a meeting of the Defra Antimicrobial Resistance Coordination (DARC) group to discuss this issue. Further such meetings are planned.
	Another part of the Government's efforts to help farmers prepare for the ban was to fund a research and development project to look at the potential effects of the withdrawal of antimicrobial growth promoters on the pig industry. The results have shown ways farmers can adapt their herd management to cope with the ban on antimicrobial growth promoters without increasing the risk of disease and therefore the need to treat with therapeutic antimicrobials. Two meetings have been held with pig farmers to inform them of the results. Details of the project can be found at www.vmd.defra.gov.uk.

Japanese Knotweed

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has for a coordinated and strategic approach to the problem of Japanese knotweed.

Ben Bradshaw: I am aware of the problems caused by the spread of the introduced non-native plant, Japanese knotweed. Current legislative controls exist under section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981) to prevent its deliberate planting or growing in the wild. The Department is also collaborating with a consortium led by Cornwall County Council to undertake a four-year project researching the natural control of Japanese knotweed. The study began last year and will undertake the necessary research to establish whether natural control is a feasible method for the long-term, sustainable management of Japanese knotweed in the UK.
	Recognising the importance of a strategic approach for non-native species policy, the Department recently consulted on the development of a strategy, and officials are currently analysing the responses. It is essential that limited resources are targeted to the most problematic species, and the outcome of the consultation will assist my Department and the Devolved Administrations in developing a strategy that will help prioritise action.
	The hon. Member may be interested to learn that in the meantime, my Department has commissioned research to develop a standardised risk assessment system enabling species to be routinely assessed. Following the development and introduction of risk assessment procedures, the aim would be to identify those species constituting the highest risk(s). The risk assessment procedure may also be of use in identifying those established invasive non-native species where action may be appropriate.

Litter (Fines)

Parmjit Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to allow local councils to keep income from on the spot fines for dropping litter.

Alun Michael: Section 119 of the Local Government Act 2003, which allows local authorities to keep receipts from litter fixed penalty notices, came into force on 18 November 2003.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs why English Nature did not inform the hon. Member for Totnes of its wish to extend, under section 28C of the Wildlife Countryside Act 1981, the site boundaries of Slapton Ley site of Special Scientific Interest.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 26 April 2004
	Notification of the boundary extension and addition of interest features, to Slapton Ley Site of Special Scientific Interest was made on 11 February 2004 and in accordance with the requirements specified in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended. Also according to those requirements, a public notice appeared in the Western Morning News on 17 February 2004. The consultation period on this notification ends on the 11 June 2004. English Nature must decide whether to confirm the notification within nine months. Any unresolved objections will be considered by English Nature's Council at its meeting in September 2004.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many changes to the geographical boundaries of sites of Special Scientific Interest have been made in each of the last three years; and which have (a) increased and (b) decreased in area.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 26 April 2004
	In the last three years there have been 15 geographical changes to SSSIs boundaries made under section 28B and section 28C of the Wildlife And Countryside Act 1981, as amended. Those that have had their areas increased are shown in the list. None of the changes resulted in decreases to a SSSI area.
	2001–02
	Porlock Ridge and Saltmarsh
	River Dee
	Thatcham Reed Beds
	Dabble Bank
	Ravenhead Brickworks
	Total: 5
	2002–03
	Compton Chine to Steephill Cove
	Purfleet Chalk Pit
	Crookhill Brick Pit 1
	Ebernoe Common 1
	Eversden and Wimpole Woods
	Stour Estuary
	Orwell Estuary
	Total: 7
	2003–04 (to present)
	Humber Estuary 1
	Orton Pit 1
	Slapton Ley1
	Total: 3
	1   Changes to these SSSIs have been notified but not yet confirmed, as the nine month period for doing so is on-going.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what changes have been proposed by English Nature to the rules and regulations affecting sites of Special Scientific Interest; and whether the changes as proposed in relation to the Slapton Ley site are part of a national change.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 26 April 2004
	Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) are notified and protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (WCA) 1981, as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way (CROW) Act 2000. No changes to this regime have been proposed by English Nature. Under this regime, English Nature has a duty to notify land as a SSSI, and may amend existing SSSIs, where it is of the opinion that land is of special interest by reason of the flora, fauna or geological or physiographical features. The changes at Slapton Ley SSSI have been notified under section 28C of the WCA 1981.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many sites of special scientific interest there are, broken down by region; and if she will list the additional sites declared in each of the last three years.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 26 April 2004
	There are a total of 4,111 sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) in England. Some SSSIs cross regional boundaries, and will therefore have been double counted in the table below.
	
		
			 Government region Number of SSSIs 
		
		
			 Eastern 569 
			 East Midlands 391 
			 London 34 
			 North East 256 
			 North West 442 
			 South East 703 
			 South West 978 
			 West Midlands 446 
			 Yorks 375 
		
	
	19 new SSSIs have been confirmed in the last three years. They are:
	
		
			 2001–2002 2002–2003 2003–2004 
		
		
			 Birklands West and Ollerton Corner Chapel Point to Walla Bank Slade Brook 
			 Roecliffe Manor Lawns Caen Valley Bats  
			 Mattishall Moor Withcall and South Willingham Tunnels  
			 Lower Coombe and Ferne Brook Meadow Normanby Meadows  
			 Barn Elms Wetland Centre Stiffkey Valley  
			 Long Lye Meadows Briddlesford Copses  
			 Cranmore Common Holehaven Creek  
			 Sutton and Lound Gravel Pits Harries Ground, Rodbourne  
			 Beck Dale Meadows Mottisfont Bats  
			
			 Total: 9 Total: 9 Total: 1

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the reasons were for the Standard Types of Operation 19 and 21, in Annex 3 of English Nature's notification under section 28C of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 issued on 11 February 2004 relating to Slapton Ley Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 26 April 2004
	English Nature is required under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended, to notify any operations which appear to it to be likely to damage the special interest of the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). English Nature must consent before any such operations are carried out. I understand from English Nature that Operation 19 and Operation 21 were specified as likely to damage the special interest of Slapton Ley SSSI when the site was re-notified in 1984. They remain applicable to Slapton Ley SSSI because it is considered that such operations would have the potential to cause damage to the site. The legislation requires English Nature to notify any such operations anew when exercising its powers under section 28C of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended.

Civil Servants

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many officials in (a) her Department and (b) executive agencies reporting to her Department are employed in the Vale of York.

Alun Michael: Defra has one office located in the Vale of the York. It is the Thirsk office of the Veterinary Laboratories Agency, where 28 officials are employed.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Human Rights

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he plans to sign and ratify the First Optional Protocol to the International Council on Civil and Political Rights on behalf of the United Kingdom.

Bill Rammell: The Government are currently reviewing the United Kingdom's position in relation to a number of international human rights instruments. This review includes the First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which allows the right of individual petition. We will announce the outcomes of the Review to Parliament as soon as is reasonably possible.

Cyprus

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is towards (a) Cyprus and (b) Turkey in the light of the outcome of the referendums in Cyprus on 24 April.

Denis MacShane: I draw my hon. Friend's attention to the Foreign Secretary's written statement of 28 April 2004, Official Report, columns 44–46WS. The statement contained the Government's response to the outcome of the voting on 24 April and referred to the conclusions on Cyprus from the General Affairs and External Relations Council of 26 April 2004. UK policy is fully reflected in these decisions of the European Union, which I very much welcome.
	I very much value our close relationship with the Republic of Cyprus. I look forward to this continuing, enhanced by the new dimension of EU membership after 1 May.
	Like our EU partners, the UK is keen to see an end to the international isolation of the Turkish Cypriots. This does not mean a change in the government's policy of not recognising the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus". But the situation in the north of the island has changed—the Turkish Cypriots have expressed a clear desire for a future within the EU, and on the basis of a reunified island. That is our objective too. As we work to achieve it, the EU is committed to addressing the economic disparity between the north and south.
	The EU has also welcomed Turkey's constructive approach to the settlement negotiations. The lack of a Cyprus settlement should not impede the opening of accession negotiations on the basis of the Copenhagen criteria. We will continue to work with Turkey to encourage the implementation of the necessary reforms, so that the European Council can take a positive decision in December 2004.

Managed Migration

Richard Page: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how long embassies will retain the passports of citizens of (a) Romania and (b) Bulgaria seeking managed migration employment visas as a result of the conduct of the Ken Sutton inquiry.

Chris Mullin: Applications by Romanian and Bulgarian citizens for managed migration visas have been suspended pending the completion of Ken Sutton's inquiry. Passports that are retained by our Embassies in connection with managed migration applications will be held until the application can be resolved, or until the applicant requests the return of their passport in person at the embassy. Applications can be held open despite the return of the passport, if the request is made in person.

Sudan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has held with the National Islamic Front Government of the Sudan over the continuing use of Hudud.

Chris Mullin: Amputations and flogging are incompatible with international human rights law. We regularly raise the matter with the Sudanese Government, both bilaterally and as part of the EU-Sudan dialogue. Indeed, I discussed the application of hudud punishments with the Sudanese ambassador on 2 December 2003, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn), discussed the human rights situation generally with the President of Sudan in Khartoum on 10 December.

Departmental Wine Cellars

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many bottles of wine are held by his Department.

Bill Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not hold central records of the wines held by UK missions overseas. In the UK, the principal holding is the Government Wine Cellar, managed by Government Hospitality on behalf of all Government Departments. The stock of approximately 37,000 bottles is a mixture of fine wines, less expensive beverage wines and spirits. The cellar is generally stocked by purchasing when they are young and relatively inexpensive and then allowing them to mature. This allows the government to use fully mature wines of considerable value for its hospitality requirements, while representing a considerable saving to the taxpayer compared to the cost of buying mature wines in the open market.

HEALTH

"Winning Ways"

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what progress has been made in setting up a rapid review process for new procedures and products claiming to prevent or control healthcare-associated infection as announced in Winning Ways;
	(2)  when he expects the first procedures and products to be reviewed under Winning Ways; and how recommendations will be implemented.

John Hutton: Action is being taken jointly between officials in the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the national health service health technology assessment programme and the Health Protection Agency. We are still exploring the options for this new rapid review process but hope that evaluations will start later this year.

Agency Nurses (Weston Area)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 7 April 2004, refs 163515 to 163518 on public bodies, what he estimates the staff and administration costs have been to his Department of those bodies referred to which are still in existence.

Rosie Winterton: As the previous reply explained, information on the Department's task forces, ad hoc advisory groups and reviews is given in the annual publication, "Public Bodies". This publication explains that such groups have a short-term focus and when their work comes to an end they are disbanded. These groups are usually created to give expert advice to the Government on a specific issue and are usually expected to remain in operation for less than two years. They are not separate statutory bodies. As such, they have no capacity to employ staff or hold assets in their own right and rely on secretariat and other support from the Department and, sometimes, other interested bodies. They will not normally have any formal separate budget allocated to them, and accountability for expenditure will remain with the body to whom any funding is allocated.

Anaesthesia

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evaluation he has made of international trials to examine awareness devices that monitor the depth of anaesthesia.

Rosie Winterton: The New Scientist published on 14 April a research paper from the Alfred hospital in Melbourne, Australia, which reported that the BIS (Bispectral Index) monitor can aid evaluation of the depth of anaesthesia in a patient undergoing surgery. The research recommended that the BIS monitor be used in the small number of operations where there is a high risk of the patient becoming aware during the operation. A different system has been developed at the University of Glasgow. The Auditory Evoked Potential System measures the depth of anaesthesia in a different way to that of the BIS monitor. As further trials are carried out, our understanding of the safety and efficacy of these systems will increase.

Kidney Transplants

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many kidney transplants have been carried out by the NHS in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The table shows kidney transplants in the United Kingdom, since April 1997 by financial year.
	
		
			 Transplant type 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Cadaveric kidney 1,426 1,309 1,359 1,308 1,264 1,337 1,330 
			 Living donor kidney 197 241 302 341 372 379 450 
			 All kidney only 1,623 1,550 1,661 1,649 1,636 1,716 1,780 
			 Kidney-pancreas 25 21 25 41 41 48 45 
			 Kidney-liver 18 5 8 9 5 13 10 
			 Kidney/heart 3 3 1 1 3 1 1 
			 Kidney-liver- pancreas — 1 — — — — — 
			 Total kidney 1,669 1,580 1,695 1,700 1,685 1,778 1,836 
		
	
	In the UK we have invested in a number of initiatives to boost organ donation. Between 1 April 2003 and 31 March 2004 there were 2,854 transplants—the highest number of organ transplants in seven years. The highest number of patients for fourteen years received a kidney-only transplant with living donation now representing one in four of all kidney-only transplants. We saw a 20 per cent. increase in non-heartbeating donation and more than 800,000 people added their names to the NHS organ donor register.

Knee/Hip Operations

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many replacement (a) knee and (b) hip joint operations have been carried out in each year since 1980.

John Hutton: The following table shows the counts of finished consultant episodes for knee and hip replacement operations carried out in national health service hospitals in England for the years 1989–1990 to 2002–03. The Department is unable to provide data before 1989–1990, as the data collected before that year is not directly comparable to the hospital episode statistics currently collected.
	
		
			  Count of hip replacement operations Count of knee replacement operations 
		
		
			 1989–90 51,732 12,817 
			 1990–91 51,276 14,464 
			 1991–92 56,973 17,688 
			 1992–93 59,033 20,404 
			 1993–94 60,363 23,052 
			 1994–95 65,158 26,125 
			 1995–96 66,436 29,750 
			 1996–97 64,507 27,150 
			 1997–98 63,033 27,592 
			 1998–99 70,101 32,761 
			 1999–2000 70,672 33,750 
			 2000–01 73,444 37,412 
			 2001–02 72,788 39,132 
			 2002–03 77,902 46,036 
		
	
	Source:
	Hospital episode statistics (HES), Department of Health.

Medication Review Curriculum

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards developing a medication review curriculum for (a) providers of education and (b) those seeking training on medication reviews; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Department is not responsible for setting curricula for health professional training; that is rightly the responsibility of the statutory and professional bodies. However, we do share a commitment with those bodies that all health professionals are trained so that they have the skills and knowledge to deliver a high quality health service to all groups of the population with whom they deal.

National Service Frameworks

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what specific funding has been allocated for the implementation of each of the national service frameworks in each of the last three years.

John Hutton: For 2002–03, there was limited earmarking of funds within health authorities' revenue allocations. The following sums formed part of the allocations with the intention that they were spent on the purpose for which they were included:
	£76 million for cancer;
	£60 million for CHD; and
	£75 million for mental health.
	For 2003–04 to 2005–06 there has been no earmarking of funds within primary care trust revenue allocations. None of the growth money has been identified for specific purposes.

Neurosurgical Consultants

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many neurosurgical consultants are expected to retire in each of the next five years.

John Hutton: Analysis of recent past data suggests that if we take account of those leaving for career breaks and other reasons, as well as those leaving for retirement, a total of around 11 or 12 neurosurgical consultants leave each year. This is more than offset by the number of new joiners, rejoiners and those recruited through various recruitment and retention initiatives. We would not expect the number of leavers to change very much over time.

North Bristol NHS Trust

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been lent by the NHS Bank to North Bristol NHS Trust in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04; and how much is expected to be lent in (c) 2004–05 and (d) 2005–06 and beyond; how much of this is expected to be repaid, and over what timescale; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 27 April 2004
	Applications for NHS Bank assistance are made on behalf of national health service trusts by the managing strategic health authority (SHA). The North Bristol trust received the following sums from the overall sums made available to Avon Gloucestershire and Wiltshire SHA area.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2002–2003 0 
			 2003–2004 18.1 
		
	
	Final decisions have not been made on the level of special assistance for the SHA, but they expect the North Bristol trust to receive £20 million in 2004–05. No decision has been made on funding for 2005–06.
	Decisions on recovery of funds will be determined at a later stage and may well involve reductions to capital resources as well as or instead of revenue.

Patient Experience

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 7 April 2004, ref 162425, on Patient Experience, if he will set out how the money for the Patient Experience project was spent.

Rosie Winterton: The project sought the views of patients, the public and national health service staff to understand the key components of a positive patient experience.
	The total cost of the patient experience project was £39,722.60. This figure can be broken down into the project fee and miscellaneous expenses, as shown in the tables.
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Project fee 36,190.00 
			 Miscellaneous expenses 3,532.60 
			 Total cost of project 39,722.60 
		
	
	These figures can be further broken down as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Project fee  
			 2 x 1 day workshops with patients (@ £8,000 each) 16,000 
			 2 x groups with the public (@ £2,000 each) 4,000 
			 2 x mini-groups with young people (@ £1,600 each) 3,200 
			 3 x depth interviews with people with mental health problems (@ £600 each) 1,800 
			 2 x groups with health practitioners (@ £2,500 each) 5,000 
			 30 x on-street interviews with public 800 
			 VAT (17.5 per cent. of £30,800) 5,390 
			 Total Project Fee (excluding miscellaneous expenses) 36,190 
			   
			 Miscellaneous expenses  
			 Technical costs 1035.10 
			 Accommodation and venue hire 1145.64 
			 Travel expenses 825.58 
			 VAT (17.5 per cent. of £3,007.32) 526.28 
			 Total Miscellaneous Expenses (including VAT) 3532.60

Pension Schemes

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2004, Official Report, column 865W, on pension schemes, how many people have (a) transferred their pensions into the NHS scheme and (b) been refused such transfers in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The number of transfer payments accepted by the National Health Service Pension Scheme in England and Wales for each of the last five years is shown in the table. The NHS Pensions Agency does not record information about transfer applications that are rejected.
	
		
			 1 April to 31 March Transfer payments accepted 
		
		
			 2003–04 8,129 
			 2002–03 8,223 
			 2001–02 7,781 
			 2000–01 7,591 
			 1999–2000 8,382

HOME DEPARTMENT

Operation Artemis

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, under 
	(1)  what authority police officers on Operation Artemis ask gamekeepers to sign a pledge supporting the Operation; and what penalty applies to any gamekeeper who refuses to do so;
	(2)  what precedent there is for members of the public being asked to sign a pledge in support of a police operation;
	(3)  what statutory basis there is for police officers on Operation Artemis to demand access to private land without a search warrant;
	(4)  what the cost is of Operation Artemis.

Hazel Blears: Police officers have no legal authority to ask gamekeepers to sign a pledge supporting Operation Artemis. Police officers request that pledge but nobody is compelled to make it impracticable to visit each person to ask them to sign a pledge. Operation Artemis is innovative in that it has identified and seeks to raise awareness specifically amongst those who may have a motive for committing offences against Hen Harriers. Given the numbers of breeding birds the Police service considered it possible to visit many of those persons who may have a motive for criminal action. The purpose of such visits is to make people aware of the importance of complying with the criminal law and advising them individually that the Police would be embarking upon enforcement action against those who choose not to comply with the law and commit criminal offences. The request to sign up to Operation Artemis amounts to confirmation that such advice has been received.
	Police officers have no power to demand access to private land. They have powers to enter such land without search warrants if they have reasonable suspicion that certain offences may have taken place or under other authorities to carry out operations such as surveillance.
	The statutory basis allowing police officers on Operation Artemis in England and Wales to enter any land without a search warrant is Section 19 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
	The costs of Operation Artemis cannot be quantified as in the main they have been met from existing Police budgets utilising officers whose duties are to address wildlife crime .Costs relating to the production of literature and other media have been met from contributions made by the Home Office, Defra and the Statutory Nature Conservation Organisations. The Home Office has provided 3,500 for CCTV cameras at nesting sites.

International Terrorism

Andrew Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what extra funding has been directed to individual constabularies to make contingency preparations, including training and extra manpower, for the possibility of terrorist attack; and to which constabularies such funding has been directed.

Hazel Blears: We are unable to provide details of the allocation of counter terrorist funding for individual forces for security reasons. However the Police Service in England and Wales will receive a total of £84 million in 2004–05 for the purposes of countering the increased threat from international terrorism since September 2001.

Animal Experiments

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision is made to alleviate the suffering of animals in xenotransplantation experiments.

Caroline Flint: Xenotransplantation is the grafting, or transplantation, of cells, tissues or organs between species. It encompasses a wide range of techniques from the injection of cells to solid organ transplantation. As with all research licensed under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, suffering in xenotransplantation experiments is minimised by removing causes of pain and distress and implementing measures to detect and alleviate any suffering that is caused. In the case of surgical procedures this would include the use of appropriate analgesic and anaesthetic regimens and other forms of post-operative care.

Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to commission an evaluation of the efficacy of animal experimentation.

Caroline Flint: The Government have no plans to do so.

Animal Experiments

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment the Government have made of the level of harassment of suppliers and customers of businesses regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.

Caroline Flint: From correspondence and meetings with victims of intimidation, we are well aware of the seriousness of animal rights extremism for the bioscience sector and for companies doing business with the sector. The Government have made it clear that intimidation and harassment of those going about their lawful business is totally unacceptable.

Asylum Seekers

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the asylum appeals of (a) Fariborz Gravindi, (b) Mokhtar Haydary and (c) Faroq Haidari were dismissed; under what circumstances they would be allowed to remain in the UK; and what representations he has received on their cases.

Des Browne: All Home Office records relating to individuals are confidential. I am therefore not able to comment on individual cases. I have however written to the hon. Member.

Asylum Seekers

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of failed asylum seekers absconded in the last 12 months.

Des Browne: Information on the number or proportion of asylum applicants who have absconded is not available except by examination of individual case-files at disproportionate cost.
	Some asylum seekers who have 'absconded' may have left the UK voluntarily; others may remain in the UK illegally. Applicants do not always inform the Immigration Service prior to leaving the UK. We are making improvements in the area of contact management as detailed in the White Paper: Secure Borders, Safe Haven: Integration with Diversity in Modern Britain, paragraph 4.42.

CCTV

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much public funding has been spent on CCTV security cameras in Heywood and Middleton since 1997.

Hazel Blears: Since 1997, the Home Office has provided £209,536 to Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council, which includes the Heywood and Middleton constituency.
	Allocation of that funding locally is a matter for Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council and the Greater Manchester police. The information is not held centrally.

CCTV

James Purnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much public funding has been spent on CCTV cameras in Stalybridge and Hyde since 1997.

Hazel Blears: Since 1997, the Home Office has provided £337,000 to Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council, which includes the Stalybridge and Hyde constituency.
	Allocation of that funding locally, is a matter for Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council and the Greater Manchester police. The information is not held centrally.

Drugs Misuse

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what public funds were spent on tackling drugs misuse in Burnley in (a) 1997–98 and (b) 2003–04.

Caroline Flint: The amount spent on tackling drug misuse in Burnley in 1997–98 was £670,000. This was prior to the formation of the National Drugs Strategy, and this figure has been provided from locally held information.
	Figures are not available for Burnley alone in 2003–04. The figures for Lancashire as a whole were:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Pooled Treatment Budget 3,980,000 
			 Young People 735,000 
			 Building Safer Communities 1,147,000 
			 DAT CAD 48,000 
			 DAT Development 70,000 
			 Through Care and Aftercare 35,000 
			 Total 6,015,000 
		
	
	Please note that the Building Safer Communities figure is only partly spent on tackling drugs.

Drugs Misuse

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what public funds were spent on tackling drugs misuse in Heywood and Middleton in (a) 1997–98 and (b) 2003–04.

Caroline Flint: Breakdown of financial allocation to local constituencies is not available in the form requested as funding is allocated to Drug Action Team (DAT) area (Rochdale DAT).
	The period for 1997–98 is prior to the formation of the National Drug Strategy and there is no locally held information on funding available for that financial year.
	The figures for Rochdale as a whole for 2003–04 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Pooled Treatment: 1,023,000 
			 Young People (including CJIP) 241,000 
			 Building Safer Communities 297,000 
			 DAT CAD 31,000 
			 DAT Development 37,000 
			 CJIP Capacity Building 178,000 
			 Throughcare and Aftercare 62,000 
			 Total 1,869,000 
		
	
	Please note that the Building Safer Communities Fund is only partly spent on tackling drugs.

Drugs Misuse

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was spent by the Government on crime reduction, protection and security in the London Borough of Redbridge since 1997.

Hazel Blears: Money allocated to the London Borough of Redbridge for crime reduction through a number of funding streams and for a range of projects totals £2,267,311 over the period 2000–2004. Figures before 2000 are not readily available.
	For protection and security, this information is not available in the form requested. However, the Metropolitan police did receive £47 million in 2003–04 for the purposes of enhancing its ability to respond to the threat posed by international terrorism.

Dangerous Driving

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to increase penalties for drivers who cause accidents (a) while banned from driving and (b) who do not have the required (i) insurance and (ii) MOT cover.

Caroline Flint: Where an accident appears to be the result of an offence, the driver will be prosecuted for the appropriate offence or offences committed. We have recently increased the maximum penalty for causing death offences to 14 years.
	Charges in respect of driving while disqualified, with no insurance or with no MOT cover can be brought whether or not a driver has been involved in an accident. The maximum penalties are respectively six months' imprisonment or a fine at Level 5 on the standard scale, a fine at Level 5 and a fine at either Level 3 or Level 4 according to the number of passengers a vehicle is adapted to carry. We have no current plans to increase these maxima.

Mobile Phones

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what resources he has devoted to enforcing new laws to combat driving while using mobile phones.

Caroline Flint: The new, specific, offence of using a hand-held phone while driving is intended to provide a simple, objective offence the enforcement and prosecution of which does not depend on judgments of degree of control or carelessness. The Association of Chief Police Officers have welcomed it as a straightforward method of dealing with this dangerous behaviour. The allocation of resources is a matter for individual chief officers and the police will enforce the offence as operationally appropriate.

NCIS

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he or his Department have had from (a) Greater Manchester police, (b) South Wales police and (c) the UK Immigration Service regarding their future working relationship with the National Criminal Intelligence Service or the Serious and Organised Crime Agency.

Hazel Blears: None.

Serious Organised Crime Agency

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the proposed new powers of the Serious and Organised Crime Agency on client confidentiality in relation to the work of tax advisers and accountants.

Hazel Blears: We have invited comments on the proposals in the White Paper, One Step Ahead, A 21st Century Strategy to Defeat Organised Crime, by 30 July. We will consider those comments carefully before introducing any new powers.

Substance Abuse

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answers of 19 April, Official Report, column 116W, on substance abuse, what mechanisms he uses to gauge the level of misuse of volatile substances by young people.

Caroline Flint: Information on the use of volatile substances among young people aged 11–15 years is collected in an annual national survey of secondary schoolchildren commissioned by the Department of Health. "Drug use, smoking and drinking among young people in England in 2003" was based on 10,000 completed questionnaires from 321 schools in England. The survey showed eight per cent reported taking volatile substances in 2003, compared with six per cent in 2002 and seven per cent in 2001. The Home Office also produces its own statistics on general drug usage through its British Crime Survey. The last figures published were for the year 2002–2003.

Under-12s Concession

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the decision was made to withdraw the concession for under-12s to join a parent in the UK; and when the information was posted on the Immigration and Nationality Directorate website.

Des Browne: Following careful consideration, my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Beverley Hughes), decided on 13 March 2003 to withdraw the Under 12 Concession with effect from 29 March 2003.
	The section of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate website relating to children was updated on 12 August 2003. However, a different section of the website relating to spouses and maintenance and accommodation was found to contain a reference to the concession only recently and was amended on 13 April 2004.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Water Services

Norman Baker: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission what change in water consumption was achieved by the rationalisation of water services undertaken in 1999–2000 in (a) actual and (b) percentage terms.

Archy Kirkwood: The rationalisation of water services was designed to improve water quality and meet required legal standards. It was not a consumption saving measure. There was therefore no change in water consumption as a result of this rationalisation.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Official Photographs

Bob Spink: To ask the Leader of the House if he will place in the Library the most recent set of official photographs taken in the House while it was sitting.

Archy Kirkwood: I have been asked to reply.
	I understand that Mr. Speaker will be considering this matter shortly.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Mobile Telephone Industry (Hacking)

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with the mobile telephone industry to reduce the vulnerability to hacking of Bluetooth-enabled telephones and wireless headsets.

Stephen Timms: DTI officials are in regular contact with mobile industry bodies and have raised this issue with them.
	All Bluetooth devices adhere to the Bluetooth technical specification in order to ensure worldwide compatibility. Action to address the vulnerability of Bluetooth enabled devices to hacking would therefore need to be taken at the international level to be effective across all devices. However, not all Bluetooth devices are vulnerable to this security threat.
	I understand that the industry is working both to address the vulnerability of all new devices (of the type affected) to hacking, and to tackle the present threat.

Civil Partnerships

Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2004, Official Report, column 861W, on civil partnerships, whether legal rights and benefits to which married couples are entitled have not been included in the Civil Partnership Bill.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 28 April 2004
	The purpose of the Civil Partnership Bill is to establish a new legal relationship for same-sex couples and to enable those couples who register as civil partners of each other to access many of the legal rights and responsibilities to which married couples are entitled. The Government have therefore aimed to provide parity of treatment for civil partners.

Departmental Entertainment

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her latest estimate is of the amount spent by her Department on official entertainment in each year from 1996–97 to 2004–05.

Patricia Hewitt: The following table shows the expenditure on entertainment by the Department of Trade and Industry in each year between 1999–2000 and 2003–04.
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			 1999–2000 887 
			 2000–01 1,089 
			 2001–02 1,165 
			 2002–03 1,311 
			 2003–04 1,110 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   The expenditure represents less than 0.016 per cent. of the Department's total gross expenditure.
	2.   The Department expects expenditure for 2004–05 to be of a similar order.
	3.   Figures for earlier periods are not available on a consistent basis.

Post Office Closures

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions a decision to close a post office in Scotland as part of the urban reinvention programme was reversed following the six week consultation in the last five years.

Stephen Timms: Decisions on post office closures are an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. and I have therefore asked the Chief Executive to reply direct to the hon. Member.

Post Office Closures

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make electronically accessible the Royal Mail's estimates of delivery times for the Isle of Wight under the single delivery reforms, broken down by postcode.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 29 April 2004
	Delivery times are the operational concern of Royal Mail Group and I have therefore asked the Chief Executive to reply direct to the hon. Member.

Renewable Energy

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent meetings (a) she and (b) the Minister for Energy have had with organisations concerned with development of the renewable energy industries.

Stephen Timms: Both my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and I regularly meet with groups and organisations concerned with the development of the renewable energy industry. I have attended numerous events outside the Department for discussions about renewable energy. For example, on Monday I addressed the Investing in Renewable Energy Conference in the City of London.

Science Strategy

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she has taken to enhance science in her Department since the publication of the Government's science strategy, Investing in Innovation.

Patricia Hewitt: DTI is responsible for the bulk of the public expenditure on science and technology research in UK universities, promotes the exploitation of science and engineering in business innovation and uses science to inform its own policies.
	The Department will invest over £2.7 billion on university research and business innovation in 2004–2005. In the Budget, the Chancellor announced the Government's intention to establish a 10-year framework for science and innovation, which will be informed by a consultation document as part of the 2004 spending review. Our aim is to grow public investment in the science base faster than the trend rate of GDP growth over the next spending review period.
	The Innovation Report, published in December 2003, sets out our strategy for refocusing DTI's support for business innovation by targeting our innovation investment into a limited number of fields of research, but ensuring that our intervention brings coherence to other support from the public and private sectors and makes a positive difference to outcomes in terms of business productivity and competitiveness.

TRANSPORT

Battersea Park Station

Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with Network Rail about improvements to Battersea Park Station.

Tony McNulty: Network Rail and the Strategic Rail Authority continue to hold discussions on this issue and to update my officials on progress. I understand that Network Rail and Parkview International are currently in negotiations over a proposal that both parties hope will conclude in the near future, enabling the scheme to take place.

Departmental Events

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the conferences and seminars that his Department organised between 1 September 2003 and 28 February 2004, detailing the cost of each.

Tony McNulty: The Department communicates where appropriate with organisations through conferences and holds internal conferences and seminars in the course of normal management. The following table lists conferences and seminars organised by the central Department during the period.
	
		
			 Conference purpose Cost (£) 
		
		
			 Social inclusion issues  
			 Funding issues for community transport 900 
			 Transport needs of minority ethnic and faith communities 30,000 
			 Research into transport needs of disabled people 3,200 
			   
			 Road safety  
			 'Kerbcraft' child road safety seminar 2,500 
			 Urban safety management 12,600 
			   
			   
			 Railways  
			 'Rail matters' rail industry conference 14,300 
			   
			 Modernising customer services for drivers and vehicle operators  
			 Four commercial operator workshops 30,000 
			 Three one-stop service planning workshops 14,000 
			   
			 Financial management  
			 Internal audit seminar 12,000 
			 Audit annual conference 9,500 
			 Workshop on improving financial management 5,400 
			   
			 Regional transport  
			 Policy seminar 1,500 
			   
			 Communication  
			 Workshop on improving communication 12,500 
			 Departmental management  
			 Two senior management group workshops 10,125 
			   
			 Information technology  
			 IT User Group seminar 5,230 
			   
			 Transport security  
			 Six roadshows on ship and port security 995 
			   
			 Science  
			 Two chief scientists' seminars 2,300 
			 Hydrogen and biofuels seminar 1,230 
			   
			 Logistics and Maritime Transport  
			 Norduck Conference (Scandinavian and UK Transport Ministers and Trade Associations) 3,035 
			 Ports and the Environment Conference 5,000

Railway Improvements (Burnley)

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the likely effects of investment in railway improvements over the next 10 years upon residents of Burnley.

Tony McNulty: Residents of Burnley will benefit from the new TransPennine Express franchise, which commenced in February. The franchise secures investment of around £260 million which will include the introduction of a new fleet of 100 mph diesel trains leading to increased capacity, improved service quality and performance across the region. A new northern franchise, which will include local and regional services through Burnley, is out for tender. Work continues on the West Coast Main Line upgrade, which will see a reduction in journey times on services to and from Manchester and Preston and an increase in service frequency.

Transport Infrastructure

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the effect of investment in railway improvements over the next 10 years upon residents of Heywood and Middleton.

Tony McNulty: A new northern franchise, which will include local and regional services directly serving Heywood and Middleton, is out for tender. Residents of Heywood and Middleton will benefit from the new TransPennine Express franchise, which commenced in February, serving the main towns and cities across the north. The franchise secures investment of around £260 million which will include the introduction of a new fleet of 100 mph diesel trains leading to increased capacity, improved service quality and performance across the region. Work continues on the West Coast Main Line upgrade, which will see a reduction in journey times on services to and from Manchester and Preston and an increase in service frequency.

Transport Infrastructure

James Purnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the effect of investment in railway improvements over the next 10 years upon residents of Stalybridge and Hyde.

Tony McNulty: Residents of Stalybridge and Hyde will benefit from the new TransPennine Express franchise, which commenced in February. The franchise secures investment of around £260 million which will include the introduction of a new fleet of 100 mph diesel trains leading to increased capacity, improved service quality and performance across the region, A new northern franchise, which will include local and regional services through the constituency, is out for tender. Work continues on the West Coast Main Line upgrade, which will see a reduction in journey times on services to and from Manchester and Preston and an increase in service frequency.

TREASURY

Connexions

Charles Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, 
	(1)  what (a) discussions and (b) correspondence he has had with the Secretary of State for Education and Skills concerning the written encouragement issued by the Department for Education and Skills to Connexions partnerships to improve their tax efficiency;
	(2)  whether Connexions Service private contractors are able to reclaim VAT.

John Healey: HM Customs and Excise have clarified the VAT rules with DfES and Connexions. It is a matter for the DfES how funding for the Connexions programme is allocated, and a matter for individual connexions partnerships how they organise their VAT affairs.
	Private contractors subcontracted to provide services to a Connexions partnership must charge VAT, and this means that under the normal rules they are also entitled to recover the VAT, they pay on the items they purchase.
	Limited companies established by Connexions partnerships to deliver Connexions services are not carrying out any business activity and therefore do not charge VAT and are unable to recover any VAT they incur.
	Local authorities tasked with delivering Connexions services will normally be able to recover any VAT they incur under section 33 of the VAT Act 1994, as they do for other services they deliver.

Council Tax (Pensioners)

George Osborne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what mechanism will be used to deliver the £100 council tax payment to pensioners aged over 70 years announced in the 2004 Budget; and when it will be paid.

Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
	The intention is for the payments to be made automatically with the 2004–05 winter fuel payment, to those who are eligible and who do not need to claim it, before the end of the year. People who do not get a winter fuel payment will need to claim the one-off payment from the Department for Work and Pensions before 31 March 2005.

Gender Equality Directive

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the (a) financial and (b) regulatory impact to (i) consumers and (ii) business of the Gender Equality Directive with regard to risk-based pricing in relation to gender; and if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on this issue.

Ruth Kelly: The Government have welcomed the development of European sex discrimination legislation through an Equal Treatment Directive but are concerned about the impacts, both on consumers and on the insurance industry, of the measures aimed at actuarial pricing of insurance and related financial services. The UK will continue to negotiate constructively to achieve a final agreement that reflects UK priorities and concerns.

VAT (Learning and Skills Council)

Charles Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on which transactions and activities relating to the provision of services the Learning and Skills Council is entitled to reclaim VAT costs.

John Healey: Under the normal VAT rules, VAT registered organisations can recover any tax they incur on purchases which relate to their taxable business activities.
	HM Customs and Excise is debarred by statute from disclosing information about the affairs of individual taxpayers. Exemption 15 (Statutory and other restrictions) of the Open Government Code applies.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Age-Related Payments Bill

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions under what circumstances he expects to use the powers in the Age-Related Payments Bill to make payments to pensioners under the age of 70.

Malcolm Wicks: The affirmative regulation making power allows for ad-hoc payments to pensioners and the circumstances for the making of such payments will be determined at the time. If such regulations are made they will be debated in Parliament and subject to the approval of both Houses.

Council Tax

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people aged over 70 years are in receipt of council tax benefit in Scotland, broken down by (a) local authority area and (b) parliamentary constituency.

Chris Pond: The information is not available in the format requested.
	The number of council tax benefit recipients aged over 70 in Scotland at May 2002 is 179,000.
	Notes:
	1.   The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or couple.
	2.   The figure is rounded to the nearest thousand.
	3.   Council tax benefit data excludes second adult rebate cases.
	4.   The figure refers to cases where the claimant and/or partner are aged over 70.
	5.   The figure is based on a 1 per cent. sample and therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation.
	Source:
	Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System, Annual 1 per cent. sample, taken in May 2002.

External Consultants

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to his answer of 22 April 2004, Official Report, column 666W, on external consultants, what the cost of the external consultants for each of the projects listed was.

Jane Kennedy: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

National Insurance Rebates

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his latest estimate is of expenditure on national insurance rebates for those who are contracted out of the state second pension (a) in 2006–07 and (b) for each of the next 10 financial years.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table:
	
		
			 Tax year Estimated rebate cost (£ billion) 
		
		
			 2006–07 12.7 
			 2007–08 12.2 
			 2008–09 12.5 
			 2009–10 12.8 
			 2010–11 13.1 
			 2011–12 13.5 
			 2012–13 13.5 
			 2013–14 13.8 
			 2014–15 14.2 
			 2015–16 14.6 
			 2016–17 15.0 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures are based on the assumptions used to determine the current national insurance rebates and those for the long-term Public Expenditure Survey undertaken in February 2004.
	Source:
	Government Actuary's Department

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claimants for winter fuel payments were disallowed because of late application in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of winter fuel payment claims disallowed because of a late application is in the table.
	
		
			 Year Late claim disallowances made 
		
		
			 2001–02 10,308 in respect of winter 2000–01 
			 2002–03 1,745 in respect of winter 2000–01 
			  4,564 in respect of winter 2001–02 
			 2003–04 1,760 in respect of winter 2000–01 
			  2,204 in respect of winter 2001–02 
			  3,948 in respect of winter 2002–03

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons Mr. G. Mack of Bradenstoke, Chippenham, Wiltshire had his winter fuel payment disallowed in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03.

Malcolm Wicks: I will write privately to the hon. Member clarifying matters in respect of Mr. Mack. This is in line with paragraph 12, part 2, of the code of practice on Access to Government Information.

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by what mechanism a pensioner is informed of eligibility for winter fuel payment where, through clerical error, their details do not appear on the Electoral Register.

Malcolm Wicks: Most payments are made automatically without the need to claim. Every effort is made to try and contact those who are newly eligible, however there will be some where sufficient details are not held. For those people who do need to make a claim an extensive publicity campaign is carried out. This begins three months before the qualifying week in September and continues to the end of March. The campaign includes: advertisements in national and local press; a leaflet and poster made available in a variety of venues, a dedicated winter fuel payment helpline and information on the internet.
	Where a person needs to claim it is up to them whether they do so. They have until 30 March to make a claim.

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many senior citizens in Manchester, Gorton have benefited from the winter fuel allowance since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of senior citizens in the Manchester, Gorton constituency who have received a winter fuel payment in each year since 1999–2000 (including provisional figures for 2003–04) is in the table. Information relating to the 1997–98 and 1998–99 winters is not available.
	
		
			  Payments made 
		
		
			 1999–2000 10,370 
			 2000–01 11,000 
			 2001–02 10,870 
			 2002–03 10,820 
			 2003–04 10,625 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Numbers are rounded to the nearest 5.
	2.   Please note that the figures for 2003–04 refer only to the main payment run, i.e. they do not include the late payment run figures. We estimate that there are approximately 100,000 people in Great Britain paid via late payment runs (0.8 per cent. of all payments). However, since late payment runs are mainly in respect of non-system cases whose claims had not been received by Qualifying Week, they are heavily skewed towards men aged 60.
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. samples.

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in a residential or nursing home have been ineligible for the winter fuel payment in each year since its introduction.

Malcolm Wicks: We estimate in the year 2002–03 about 16,450 people in residential or nursing homes in Great Britain were ineligible for a Winter Fuel Payment because they were receiving Income Support or income based Jobseekers Allowance. The figures for winter 2003–04 are not yet available but we would expect the numbers to be similar. Figures are not available for earlier years.
	Note
	Any residence where there are four or more residents aged 60 or over is assumed to be a Registered Care and Nursing Home.

Nursing Home Residents (Benefits)

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in a residential nursing home have been in receipt of the minimum income guarantee and pension credit in each year since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: Information on the number of pensioners in a nursing home and residential care who were or are in receipt of minimum income guarantee (MIG) or pension credit from November 1997 to November 2003 is shown in tables 1, 2 and 3. The figures are affected by changes made to Residential Care/Nursing Home funding arrangements in 2002 and 2003.
	
		Table 1: Income support recipients aged 60 and over in nursing homes and residential care,November 1997 to November 2001
		
			 Thousand 
			Preserved rights 
			 As at November All Residential allowance Residential care Nursing home Part III accommodation 
		
		
			 1997 239.5 152.7 44.8 35.3 6.7 
			 1998 230.6 160.9 36.0 27.3 6.4 
			 1999 225.9 169.5 30.1 20.3 6.1 
			 2000 218.4 171.8 25.3 16.0 5.3 
			 2001 214.8 175.2 21.7 12.8 5.1 
		
	
	
		Table 2: Income support recipients aged 60 and over in nursing homes and residential care, November 2002 -- Thousand
		
			  All Residential allowance Part III accommodation Others in nursing homes and residential care 
		
		
			 November 2002 186.8 132.8 3.9 40.1 
		
	
	
		Table 3: Pension credit recipients in nursing homes and residential care, November 2003 -- Thousand
		
			  Number of recipients 
		
		
			 November 2003 157.4 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and expressed in thousands.
	2.   Figures are based on a 5 per cent. sample and are subject to a degree of sampling variation.
	3.   'Recipients aged 60 and over' are defined as where the recipient and/or partner is aged 60 or over. Figures therefore include a number of recipients aged under 60 where there is a partner aged 60 or over.
	4.   'Part III accommodation' was accommodation provided by the local authority under Part III of the National Assistance Act 1948.
	5.   There are no separate counts available for Residential Care and Nursing Homes after the abolition of preserved rights in April 2002.
	6.   Pension Credit was introduced on 6 October 2003 and replaced Minimum Income Guarantee for Income Support pensioners.
	7.   The number of Pension Credit recipients in November 2003 excludes a small number of cases still receiving Income Support.

Pension Credit

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what comparison has been made in take up rates for pension credit between rural and urban areas; and what causes he ascribes to the lower rate of increase in claims for pension credit in inner city areas in comparison to other areas.

Malcolm Wicks: It is not possible to provide detailed comparisons of levels of pension credit take-up between rural and urban areas, since estimates of numbers of households eligible for pension credit are not available at any level below that of Government office region. However, the information in the table shows the level of increase in numbers of households receiving pension credit as at 31 March 2004 over numbers receiving the minimum income guarantee (MIG) as at 3 October 2003, for local authorities classified as either 'rural' or 'not rural'. This suggests that overall rates of increase in 'not rural' areas are in general lower than in their rural counterparts. Overall, there has been an increase of 31 per cent. in the number of households receiving pension credit over those receiving MIG and an increase of 37 per cent. in the area including Newport, West.
	More detailed analysis of pension credit take-up levels is being carried out.
	
		Comparison of rate of increase between rural and not rural MIG and pension credit household levels as at 31March 2004
		
			 Total Number local authorities MIG households October Pension credit households March Household increase Percentage increase 
		
		
			 National  
			 Not rural 240 1,352,355 1,769,397 417,042 31 
			 Rural 168 443,485 632,453 188,968 43 
			 Total 408 1,795,840 2,401, 850 606,010 34 
			   
			 East of England 
			 Not rural 26 77,490 104,996 27,506 35 
			 Rural 22 59,165 85,118 25,953 44 
			 Total 48 136,655 190,114 53,459 39 
			   
			 East Midlands 
			 Not rural 20 79,345 106,000 26,655 34 
			 Rural 20 43,905 62,859 18,954 43 
			 Total 40 123,250 168,859 45,609 37 
			   
			 London  
			 Not rural 33 214,170 255,698 41,528 19 
			 Rural 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 North East 
			 Not rural 17 97,175 131,812 34,637 36 
			 Rural 6 8,895 12,761 3,866 43 
			 Total 23 106,070 144,573 38,503 36 
			   
			 North West 
			 Not rural 30 214,545 278,010 63,465 30 
			 Rural 13 33,190 46,895 13,705 41 
			 Total 43 247,735 324,905 77,170 31 
			   
			 Scotland  
			 Not rural 18 139,025 179,752 40,727 29 
			 Rural 14 50,030 68,852 18,822 38 
			 Total 32 189,055 248,604 59,549 31 
			   
			 South East 
			 Not rural 36 91,560 127,830 36,270 40 
			 Rural 31 80,685 117,001 36,316 45 
			 Total 67 172,245 244,831 72,586 42 
			   
			 South West 
			 Not rural 14 66,165 93,827 27,662 42 
			 Rural 31 74,255 109,087 34,832 47 
			 Total 45 140,420 202,914 62,494 45 
			   
			 Wales  
			 Not rural 13 70,470 94,385 23,915 34 
			 Rural 9 34,865 47,141 12,276 35 
			 Total 22 105,335 141,526 36,191 34 
			   
			 West Midlands 
			 Not rural 21 159,345 207,150 47,805 30 
			 Rural 14 29,920 42,182 12,262 41 
			 Total 34 189,265 249,331 60,066 32 
			   
			 Yorks and Humber 
			 Not rural 12 143,065 189,938 46,873 33 
			 Rural 9 28,575 40,556 11,981 42 
			 Total 21 171,640 230,494 58,854 34

Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish the results of the pilot exercise for combined pension forecasts carried out with certain employers and pension providers according to "A New Contract for Welfare: Partnership in Pensions", page 90; what steps his Department has taken towards a national roll out of these exercises; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: The Combined Pensions Forecasting service, an initiative jointly pursued by the Department for Work and Pensions and the pensions industry with the support of the Association of British Insurers and National Association of Pension Funds, was introduced following a series of pilot exercises with representatives from the private sector.
	The pilot evaluation was carried out on a confidential basis with employers and pension providers. However, a summary of the results was included in "Simplicity, security and choice: Working and saving for retirement" (pages 43–45. Command 5677) published in December 2002.
	We are currently conducting further research into the combined pension forecast service with results due to be published in the summer of this year.
	Following the pilots, the combined pension forecasting service went live in October 2001. By the end of March 2004, a total of 1.12 million Combined Pension Forecasts had been issued. To date over 700 employers and pension providers have expressed an interest in participating in the service. By the end of 2005–06 we aim to have reached 6.3 million people.

Pensions

Andrew Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made in identifying pension funds that have gone into wind-up with inadequate funds to meet their liabilities since Royal Assent to the Pensions Act 1996.

Malcolm Wicks: Information is not available on all the pension schemes which have gone into wind up with inadequate funds since Royal Assent to the Pensions Act 1995. We are currently exploring with pension scheme trustees and other industry representatives the basis on which we can establish firm estimates of the extent of the problem of defined benefit schemes winding-up under funded, the numbers affected and the potential scale of losses.

Pensions

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether local authorities will be liable for the pension protection fund levy.

Malcolm Wicks: Local authority defined benefit pension schemes will not be liable for the pension protection fund levy as they will never have recourse to PPF assistance. This is because the sponsoring employers of local government pension schemes can never become insolvent.

Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many full-time equivalent Pension Protection Fund staff he expects to employ; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: The way in which the PPF is organised and the staffing requirements which will flow from that organisational design will ultimately be a decision for the PPF Board. However we are having to make a number of planning assumptions in order to ensure that the PPF is operational by Spring next year. Our current working assumption is to have a core staff of between 100 and 150 full time equivalent people in place for spring 2005.
	The PPF is a major new reform, and we will ensure that we continue to engage thoroughly with all our partners to get it right.

Pensions

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his policy is on the rights of individuals to continue to work (a) part-time and (b) full-time after retirement; and what rules apply to pension provision in such circumstances.

Malcolm Wicks: Giving people the choice to work up to and beyond State Pension age is critical to ensure the economic prosperity of our society in terms of both work and pensions. Individuals must have the choice and opportunity to work, either full or part time, and save longer towards a financially secure retirement. Flexible working and retirement options can be especially important for individuals who have had interrupted working lives, or have on-going caring responsibilities to balance alongside their work.
	In 'Simplicity, security and choice: Working and saving for retirement' (December 2002) we set out our proposals to help individuals continue in full time or part time work longer. These included extra back to work help for those over 50, more generous incentives for deferring state pensions, tax rule changes to allow people to draw their occupational pension while continuing to work for the same employer and encouraging occupational pensions to support flexible retirement.
	The Finance Bill will introduce a simplified pension regime which increases choice and flexibility for both companies operating pension schemes and individuals saving in such schemes. The Finance Bill will mean that it will no longer be necessary for an individual to leave employment in order to access an employer's occupational pension. The tax rules will no longer dictate that an individual cannot receive their pension and continue to work for that same employer. This increased flexibility will enable people to move from full-time to part-time work and help to make the transition from work to retirement a more smooth and gradual process.
	In this year's Budget we also announced a new high profile national guidance campaign to raise employers' awareness of, and ability to adopt, flexible employment and retirement opportunities in order to increase the recruitment, training and retention of older workers.

Pensions

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 25 March 2004, Official Report, column 1030W, on pensions, if he will list the gross costs of the proposal referred to in footnote two and each of the offsets identified in footnotes three to six.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table:
	
		£ billion
		
			  Gross cost Income-related benefits saving State second pension saving Savings credit saving 
		
		
			 2004–05 17.1 2.9 0.0 0.4 
			 2005–06 17.8 3.0 0.0 0.4 
			 2006–07 18.8 3.1 0.1 0.5 
			 2007–08 20.0 3.2 0.1 0.6 
			 2008–09 21.3 3.4 0.2 0.6 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Figures are for Great Britain in 2003–04 price terms rounded to the nearest £100 million. It is assumed the change comes into effect from April 2004 and basic State Pension is uprated in line with earnings thereafter.
	2.   Gross costs are estimated by the Government Actuary's Department and are consistent with Budget 2004 assumptions and use 2002 based population projections. Gross costs refer to the additional costs after allowing for National Insurance Fund benefits and non-means tested vote benefits.
	3.   Income-related benefit offsets are calculated using the DWP policy simulation model and April 2004 benefit rates.
	4.   Additional income tax revenue is estimated by the Inland Revenue using 2004 tax rates. We are unable to publish any income tax forecast estimates for years beyond that which is published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report (currently 2006–07). The income tax estimates for 2004–05 to 2006–07 are based on the 2001–02 Survey of Personal Incomes and are projected in line with March 2004 Budget assumptions. The income tax revenue in 2004–05 is £4.6 billion, for 2005–06 is £4.9 billion and for 2006–07 is £5.2 billion, for illustrative purposes, it is assumed income tax revenue will be a fixed percentage of the gross cost for this option in 2007–08 and 2008–09 although estimates for later years would be subject to a greater degree of uncertainty.
	5.   The savings from abolishing the State Second Pension are calculated by the Government Actuary's Department and are consistent with the long term Public Expenditure Survey forecasts. No allowance has been made for changes to contracting out rules.
	6.   The savings credit is assumed to be frozen, payments uprated by prices, with no new recipients after 2004. Figures for 2004 and 2005 are based on published medium term forecasts, while those for 2006–07 and beyond are based on the illustrative long-term projections of benefit expenditure underlying Annex A of the Budget report. This is a separate saving from the offsets in income related benefits outlined in note 3.
	7.   Totals may not sum due to rounding.

Pensions

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people under 30 have taken out a stakeholder pension.

Malcolm Wicks: Information for the 2001–02 tax year is shown in the table.
	Information for the 2002–03 tax year will be available from autumn 2004.
	
		
			 Tax year Number of people aged under 30 with a stakeholder pension 
		
		
			 2001–02 230,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Information is derived from a sample of annual returns of information submitted to the Inland Revenue by stakeholder pension providers.
	2.   Figure rounded to the nearest 10,000.

Sure Start

James Purnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many mothers in Stalybridge and Hyde have made use of the Sure Start maternity grant.

Chris Pond: The information is not available in the format requested. The available information is in the tables.
	
		Sure Start Maternity Grants
		
			  Applications Awards 
		
		
			 Tameside Social Fund District 
			 2000–01 1,122 855 
			 2001–02 1,306 1,063 
			 2002(17) to December 1,069 867 
			 Sure Start Maternity Grants in Stockport and Tameside Jobcentre Plus District 
			 2003(18) 674 502 
			 2003–04 2,840 2,071 
		
	
	(17)   To December.
	(18)   January to March.
	Notes:
	1.   Data is not available by Parliamentary Constituency. Stalybridge and Hyde Parliamentary Constituency used to be part of Tameside Social Fund District. This District was involved in a very complex interlocking set of boundary changes affecting an area from North Cumbria to Norfolk, which took place from September 2002 to June 2003. Tameside District was combined with part of Stockport interim District in January 2003 to form Stockport and Tameside Jobcentre Plus District. The two areas for which data is given above are thus different, so the data is not comparable
	2.   Sure Start Maternity Grants were introduced on 27 March 2000. The very small number of cases for 1999–2000 has been excluded for data protection reasons.
	3. Data is given for all applications and awards, irrespective of whether the application was made by the mother or her partner.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many senior citizens in Burnley have benefited from the winter fuel allowance since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of senior citizens in the Burnley constituency who have benefited from a winter fuel payment in each year since 1999–2000 (including provisional figures for 2003–04) is in the table. Information relating to the 1997–98 and 1998–99 winters is not available.
	
		
			  Payments made 
		
		
			 1999–2000 14,985 
			 2000–01 16,490 
			 2001–02 16,620 
			 2002–03 16,745 
			 2003–04 16,800 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Numbers are rounded to the nearest 5.
	2.   Totals may not sum due to rounding.
	3.   Please note that the figures for 2003–04 refer only to the main payment run, i.e. they do not include the late payment run figures. We estimate that there are approximately 100,000 people in Great Britain paid via late payment runs (0.8 per cent. of all payments). However, since late payment runs are mainly in respect of non-system cases whose claim had not been received by Qualifying Week, they are heavily skewed towards men aged 60.
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. samples.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many senior citizens in Heywood and Middleton have benefited from the winter fuel allowance since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of senior citizens in the Heywood and Middleton constituency who benefited from a winter fuel payment in each year since 1999–2000 (including provisional figures for 2003–2004) is in the table. Information relating to the 1997–98 and 1998–99 winters is not available.
	
		
			  Payments made 
		
		
			 1999–2000 16,630 
			 2000–01 18,255 
			 2001–02 18,275 
			 2002–03 18,375 
			 2003–04 18,400 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Numbers are rounded to the nearest 5.
	2.   Please note that the figures for 2003–2004 refer only to the main payment run i.e. they do not include the late payment run figures. We estimate that there are approximately 100,000 people in Great Britain paid via late payment runs (0.8 per cent. of all payments). However, since late payment runs are mainly in respect of non-system cases whose claim had not been received by Qualifying Week, they are heavily skewed towards men aged 60.
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. samples.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Peter Kilfoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners received the winter fuel allowance in Liverpool, Walton in each year between 1997 and 2003.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of pensioners in the Liverpool Walton constituency who received a winter fuel payment in each year since 1999–2000 (including provisional figures for 2003–04) is in the table. Information relating to the 1997–98 and 1998–99 winters is not available.
	
		
			  Payments made 
		
		
			 1999–2000 14,420 
			 2000–01 15,495 
			 2001–02 15,300 
			 2002–03 15,370 
			 2003–04 15,160 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.   Numbers are rounded to the nearest five.
	2.   Please note that the figures for 2003–04 refer only to the main payment run i.e. they do not include the late payment run figures. We estimate that there are approximately 100,000 people in Great Britain paid via late payment runs (0.8 per cent. of all payments). However, since late payment runs are mainly in respect of non-system cases whose claim had not been received by Qualifying Week, they are heavily skewed towards men aged 60.
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre , 100 per cent. samples.